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GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


VOL.  II 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2017  with  funding  from 

University  of  Illinois  Urbana-Champaign  Alternates 


https://archive.org/details/georgegrenfellco02john_0 


GEORGE  GRENFELL 
AND  THE  CONGO 

A HISTORY  AND  DESCRIPTION  OF  THE 

CONGO  INDEPENDENT  STATE  AND  ADJOINING  DISTRICTS 

OF  CONGOLAND 

TOGETHER  WITH  SOME  ACCOUNT  OF  THE  NATIVE  PEOPLES  AND  THEIR 
LANGUAGES,  THE  FAUNA  AND  FLORA  ; AND  SIMILAR  NOTES  ON 

THE  CAMEROONS  AND  THE  ISLAND  OF  FERNANDO  PO 

FOUNDED  ON  THE  DIARIES  AND  RESEARCHES  OF  THE  LATE 

Rev.  GEORGE  GRENFELL,  b.m.s.,  f.r.g.s. 

by 

SIR  HARRY  JOHNSTON 

G.C.M.G.,  K.C.B.,  Hon.  D.Sc.  Cambs. 


IN  TWO  VOLS. 


With  496  Illustrations  from  Photographs  by  the  Revs.  GEORGE  GRENFELL  and 
William  Forfeitt,  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society.,  and  others 
And  from  Drawings  by  the  Author 

And  14  Maps  by  the  late  Rev.  GEORGE  GRENFELL,  and  also  by 
J.  W.  ADDISON,  r.  geo.  soc.,  the  last-named  being  based  mainly  on  Grenfell’s  Surveys 
And  on  Additional  Material  contributed  by  Mr.  E.  TORDAY,  the  AUTHOR, 
Mons.  A.  J.  WAUTERS,  the  Publications  of  the  CONGO  STATE, 

THE  ROYAL  GEOGRAPHICAL  SOCIETY, 

And  THE  BAPTIST  MISSIONARY  SOCIETY 


VOL.  II 


NEW  YORK 

D.  APPLETON  & COMPANY 

1910 


Printed  in  Great  Britain 


VOL.  II 


3"  64^ 


CONTENTS  OF 

CHAPTER  XXI  PAGE 

Anthropology  ........  497 

CHAPTER  XXII 

Native  Diseases  . . . . . . . 547 

CHAPTER  XXIII 

Artificial  Adornments  or  Mutilations  of  the  Body;  Dress,  etc.  558 

CHAPTER  XXIV 

Food,  Agriculture,  Cooking  . . . . . 600 

CHAPTER  XXV 

Religion;  Burial,  Marriage,  and  Birth  Customs;  Initiation 
Ceremonies;  Social  Laws,  Slavery;  Administration  of 


Justice,  etc.  .......  632 

CHAPTER  XXVI 

Houses  . . . . . . . . 726 

CHAPTER  XXVII 

Hunting,  Warfare,  Navigation  . . . . . 762 

CHAPTER  XXVIII 

Trade  and  Currency  . . . . . . 789 

\ 

CHAPTER  XXIX 

Arts  and  Industries  . . . . . . 798 

CHAPTER  XXX 

Traditions,  Stories,  Folklore  . . . . . 814 


299035 


CONTENTS 


viii 


CHAPTER  XXXI 

The  Languages  of  the  Congo  Basin  and  the  Cameroons  . . 826 

Appendix  I.  the  fernandian  or  bube  language  . . . 882 

„ II.  bibliography  of  congo-cameroons  languages  . . 887 

„ III.  THE  FAN  DIALECTS  . . . . . 891 


CHAPTER  XXXII 

Natural  History  Notes:  I.  Meteorology,  Geology,  and  Botany 


of  the  Congo  Basin  . . . . . 892 

CHAPTER  XXXIII 

Natural  History  Notes:  II.  Zoology  of  the  Congo  Basin  . .912 

ADDITIONAL  NOTE  ON  ELEPHANT  TUSKS  . . . 945 

CHAPTER  XXXIV 

Notes  on  the  Island  of  Fernando  Po  . . . . 946 

Additional  Note  on  Congo  Problems  .....  963 


Index 


967 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

250.  Alfred  Henry  Baynes,  Esq.,  F.R.A.S., 

Hon.  Secretary  of  the  Baptist  Mis- 
sionary Society  . ... 

251.  Skull  of  an  Englishman  (male),  for  com- 

parison with  the  skulls  of  Congo  negroes 

252.  A Manbettu  or  Mombutu  skull  (male), 

from  North-East  Congoland 

253.  A negro  skull  (male)  from  the  West  Coast 

of  Africa,  probably  Ashanti  (for  pur- 
poses of  comparison) 

254.  Group  of  Bambute  Dwarfs  taken  by 

Grenfell  at  Bomili,  near  the  confluence 
of  the  Aruwimi  and  the  Nepoko  . 

255.  Skull  of  Bambute  Pygmy  (male)  from 

Ituri  Forest,  north-east  Congo : col- 
lected by  Sir  Harry  Johnston 

256.  Chief  Senga  and  Lokele  people  at  Yakusu 

(the  European  is  the  late  Rev.  Harry 
White).  The  Lokele  of  the  north-east 
Congo  bend  are  rather  of  the  Forest 
negro  type — big  torso,  long  arms,  short 
legs  . . ... 

257.  Three  types  of  Bopoto  men  (these  belong 

more  or  less  to  the  Ngombe  group  of 
Central  Congoland) 

258.  Banalya  people,  on  the  middle  Aruwimi 

River  . . ... 

259.  A Turumbu  chief  and  his  attendant : 

Yalemba  . ... 

260.  An  example  of  the  “Hima”  type  from 

Yalemba,  north-east  Congo 

261.  An  Mpo  woman  from  the  Busira  River 

(her  skin  has  been  whitened  for  decora- 
tion) . . ... 

262.  Mongo  boatmen  from  Upper  Congo 

263.  Bagenya  canoe  paddlers,  Lualaba-Congo 

264.  Kongo  (on  left)  and  Holo  types  con- 

trasted. The  Bakorigo  and  Eshi- 
kongo  occupy  much  of  the  country  west 
of  the  lower  and  middle  Kwango 
River.  The  Baholo  inhabit  the  middle 
Kwango  . ... 

265.  A Bateke  man,  woman,  and  child,  from 

Stanley  Pool  . ... 

266.  Bayaka  people  from  the  banks  of  the 

Kwango,  near  Franz  Josef  Falls 


SOURCE  PAGE 


Photograph  by  Elliott  and  Fry 

Frontispiece 

Photograph  lent  by  Royal  College 
of  Surgeons  . . . 498 

Collected  by  Dr.  Schweinfurth. 

Photo  lent  by  Royal  College  of 
Surgeons  . ...  498 


Photograph  lent  by  Royal  College 
of  Surgeons  . . . 500 


Photograph  by  Grenfell  . .501 


• 5 °3 


Photograph  by  Grenfell  . 

• 505 

Photograph  by  William  Forfeitt 

• 5°9 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

• 5i3 

yy  yy  y y 

• 5H 

yy  y y yy 

. 516 

yj  yy  yy 

. 518 

yy  yy  yy  • 

• 5J9 

Photograph  by  H.  Sutton-Smith 

. 521 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 522 

» » • 523 

n 5j  • 524 


II.— A 2 


X 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

267.  Skull  of  Bambala  negro  (male),  South- 

West  Congoland  : Torday  Collection  . 

268.  Front  view  of  the  skull  of  male  Bambala, 

same  specimen  as  No.  267 

269.  A skull  (female)  of  south  Bambala  tribe, 

Kwilu  River,  South-West  Congoland  : 
Torday  Collection 

270.  Skull  (female)  in  two  different  aspects 

of  south  Bambala  type,  same  specimen 
as  No.  269  : Torday 

271.  Skull  (male)  of  north  Bambala  tribe,  Kwilu 

River,  South-West  Congoland : Torday 

272.  Skull  of  north  Bambala  negro  (same 

as  271)  . ... 

273.  Skull  (male)  of  Bahuana  negro,  Kwilu 

River:  Torday  . . 

274.  Skull  (male)  of  Bahuana  negro,  same 

as  No.  273  : Torday 

275.  Bangala  people  (New  Antwerp) 

276.  A Bangala  type  . ... 

277.  A woman  of  the  northern  Ngombe  type 

from  neighbourhood  of  Bopoto,  north- 
ern Congo  . ... 

278.  Bangala  people  of  the  Upper  Congo, 

north  shore  . ... 

279.  Ilua,  the  pilot  of  the  Mission  steamers. 

A Mongata  from  the  western  Equatorial 
Congo.  (The  Bangata  are  allied  to  the 
Bayanzi  and  the  Balolo)  . 

280.  A group  of  men,  women,  and  children 

of  the  Bwela  country  between  the 
Motima  affluent  of  the  Mongala  and 
the  Congo  . ... 

281.  Bayanzi  skull  (male)  from  Mbongo,  near 

Bolobo,  western  Congo  : collected  by 
Sir  Harry  Johnston 

282.  Skull  of  a male  Muyanzi,  of  the  Eastern 

type,  from  the  Kwilu  River,  South-West 
Congoland  : Torday  Collection 

283.  Skull  of  male  Nyamnyam  (Azande), 

north  Congo  basin,  Wele-Mubangi 
valley  : collected  by  Schweinfurth 

284.  A skull  of  Lower  Congo  negro  (male), 

probably  from  Boma : collected  by 
Captain  Fishburn,  R.N.,  Congo  Ex- 
pedition, 1816  . ... 

285.  A Bolobo  chief,  Ekwayulu  (and  his  wives 

and  son) : examples  of  the  mixed  ab- 
original and  Bayanzi  population  of  the 
banks  of  the  western  Congo,  between 
Stanley  Pool  and  Lukolela 

286.  Inquisitive  Bapoto  people  of  the  northern 

Congo . . ... 

287.  A chief  of  the  Bwela  people,  northern 

Congo  . . ... 

288.  Glossina  p alp  alts : the  tsetse  fly  that 

carries  the  trypanosome  of  sleeping 
sickness  . ... 


SOURCE  PAGE 

Photo  lent  by  Professor  D.  W.  Cun- 
ningham, Edinburgh  University.  525 

>>  >>  >»  • 526 

Photograph  from  specimen  in  Brit- 
ish Museum  . . . 527 

>>  >>  • 528 

British  Museum  . . . 529 

>»  » ...  530 

» „ ...  531 

» ...  532 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 533 

>>  >?  >>  • • 534 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt  . . 535 

a >>  >>  • • 536 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 537 

>>  >>  j>  • • 5 38 

>>  >>  5 j • • 539 

. 540 

Photograph  lent  by  Royal  College 
of  Surgeons  . . • 541 

Photograph  lent  by  Royal  College 
of  Surgeons  . . . . 542 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 543 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt  . . 545 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 546 

Adapted  from  drawings  by  Mr. 

Engel  Terzi,  by  permission  of 
British  Museum  . . . 550 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


xi 


NO.  TITLE 

289.  Bopoto  women  decorated  with  beads  and 

coloured  clay,  for  a ceremonial  pro- 
cession . ... 

290.  A dancing-  woman  and  her  attendants  of 

the  northern  Ng-ombe  people  : to  show 
paintings  on  the  body  and  face  . 

291.  Method  of  cicatrizing- the  face  at  Bopoto: 

this  picture  also  exhibits  the  simplicity 
of  clothing-  amongst  the  Bapoto  and 
northern  Ng-ombe  women  of  the  northern 
Congo . . ... 

292.  A native  of  Bopoto,  showing  cicatrization 

of  face . . ... 

293.  A Muyanzi,  to  show  pattern  of  cicatriza- 

tion on  body  and  style  of  hair-dressing 


294.  An  Ngombe  (Bwela)  man  from  the  region 

between  the  northern  Congo  and  the 
Motima  River — to  show  circatrices  on 
the  face  and  method  of  hair-dressing  . 

295.  Lokele  men  (from  Topoke),  one  of  whom 

(on  the  left)  is  wearing  a lip-ring  . 

296.  Illustration  of  unchecked  growth  of  head 

hair  in  a Mongo  negro  of  the  Upper 
Congo,  typical  of  all  the  Congo  peoples 

297.  Specimens  of  razors  from  the  Upper 

Congo ; also  (in  sheath)  a knife  for 
cutting  cicatrices 

298.  A woman  from  the  Bwela  country,  North- 

ern Congoland,  wearing  her  hair  in  the 
cylindrical  fashion  adopted  by  the  Man- 
bettu  women  . ... 

299.  A method  of  hair-dressing  amongst  the 

northern  Ngombe  women,  similar  to 
the  Nsakara  fashion 

300.  “ A holiday  spent  with  the  hair-dresser  ” : 

Bondonga  style  of  wearing  hair  . 

301.  A fashion  in  hair-dressing,  Yalemba, 

northern  Congo  . ... 

302.  The  chignon  and  coiffure  of  a Bateke 

man  from  near  Stanley  Pool 

303.  (1)  Wooden  pats  for  marking  native 

pottery.  (2)  Specimens  of  native  combs, 
Lower  Congo.  (3)  Hairpin  from  the 
Upper  Congo.  (4)  A spoon  from  the 
Bangala  people,  Upper  Congo 


SOURCE  PAGE 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt  . . 559 

» ,,  „ • 56° 

j>  >)  j>  • • 565 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 567 

Drawing  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston 
(Bolobo,  1883)  . . . 569 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 574 

>>  >>  >>  • 577 

„ » • 578 

Photograph  from  examples  in  the 
Baptist  Missionary  Society’s  col- 


lection 

. 580 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt 

. 581 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

. 582 

M ))  • 

• 583 

))  n ))  • 

• 584 

Sketch  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston 

• 585 

Photograph  from  specimens  in  the 
collection  of  the  Baptist  Mission- 
ary Society  . . . 586 

„ „ » • 587 

Photograph  lent  by  Lawson  Forfeitt  588 
Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 589 


304.  (1)  Native  copper  collar  worn  by  women 

on  the  upper  Mubangi  River.  (2)  Neck- 
lace of  copper-wire  beads  and  five 
leopard’s  teeth  (worn  by  a Lokele  chief, 
north-east  Congo).  (3)  Necklace  of 
pig’s  teeth  often  worn  by  sorcerers 
(Upper  Congo)  . ... 

305.  Solid  brass  collar  weighing  nearly  25  lb., 

worn  as  an  ornament  by  the  wife  of  a 
Bangala  chief  on  the  Upper  Congo. 
(These  collars  are  more  often  of  copper 
away  from  the  great  trade  routes) 

306.  A slave  woman  of  Bwemba,  western 

Congo,  wearing  a brass  collar  . 


Xll 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

307.  (1)  A Mubangi  leg  ornament  (coils  of 

brass  wire).  (2)  and  (2)  Brass  collars 
worn  round  the  neck  by  women  as  a 
token  of  servitude  : from  the  country 
south  of  the  main  Congo,  between 
Stanley  Pool  and  Lake  Leopold  II 

308.  (1)  Iron  bangle  from  Banalya,  Aruwimi 

River  (native  iron  roughly  worked).  (2) 
Woman’s  anklet  of  brass,  Mubangi 
River  . . ... 

309.  Bakwese  neck  ornament  formed  of  native- 

made  beads  of  blue  glass  which  are 
from  the  Katanga  country.  Pendant 
represents  miniature  bellows  such  as 
are  used  in  native  forges  . 

310.  Women’s  girdles  of  woven  grass  or  palm 

bast,  Upper  Congo 


31 1.  Pusxi : bast  or  fibre  stripped  from  the 

fronds  of  the  Raphia  palm 

312.  Grass  skirt  of  the  Ngombe  women. 

313.  Bangala  woman’s  skirt  (made  of  Raphia- 

palm  fibre)  . ... 

314.  Bustle  of  palm  fibre  worn  by  Bangala 

women,  northern  Congo  . 

315.  A Mukuba  chief  (Sankuru  River,  in  full 

dress)  . . ... 

316.  (1)  Cap  from  Congo  coast  region  made 

of  dried  grass.  (2)  War  head-dress  of 
feathers  from  the  Upper  Congo  . 

317.  A ceremonial  cap  of  the  western  Bayaka 

people  (Kwango  River),  made  of  fibre 
and  string  . ... 

318.  A horned  cap  from  the  upper  Sankuru 

River,  made  of  string.  This  gives  a 
conventional  imitation  of  ox-horns : 
collected  by  Captain  S.  L.  Hinde 

319.  Ceremonial  decorated  wig  or  cap  worn 

by  the  Bakwese  people,  South-Central 
Congoland  : Torday  Collection  . 

320.  Experimental  vegetable  garden  and 

nursery,  Bopoto,  northern  Congo:  Rev. 
William  Forfeitt. 

321.  Swahili  trader  and  people  coming  with 

Arab-grown  rice  for  sale  (mouth  of 
Lomami)  . ... 

322.  Manioc  plants  . ... 

323.  (i)Nativepipe(UpperCongo).  (2)Carved 

buffalo-horn,  for  storing  tobacco,  hemp, 
or  other  drugs  (Kasai).  (3)  Snuff-box  of 
the  Bakwese,  worn  sometimes  in  the 

ear-lobe  . ... 

324.  A native  of  Upper  Congo  climbing  oil 

palm  to  obtain  palm  wine . 

325.  Oil  palms  in  a Bayanzi  village 

326.  A covered  pot  from  the  Congo  coast 

region  in  which  maize  and  manioc  beer 
is  sometimes  kept 


SOURCE  PAGE 


Photograph  from  specimens 

in 

B.M.S.  Collection  . 

• 590 

i i i y i i 

59i 

Photograph  from  specimens 
lected  by  Torday 

col- 

59i 

Photograph  from  specimens  in  col- 
lection of  Baptist  Missionary 
Society  . ... 

592 

Photograph  by  Torday 
Photograph  from  specimen 
B.M.S.  Collection  . 

in 

593 

594 

»>  >»  >> 

595 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

595 

Photograph  by  Torday 

596 

Photograph  from  specimens 
B.M.S.  Collection  . 

in 

597 

Photograph  from  Torday  Collection 

598 

Photograph  from  specimen 
British  Museum 

in 

599 

601 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

603 

11  91  11 

11  11  11 

• 

605 

608 

Photograph  from  examples 

in 

B.M.S.  Collection  . 

. 609 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

. 610 

11  11  11 

. 61 1 

Photograph  lent  by  Torday  . 

. 613 

LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

327.  A Manbettu  honey-pot  with  a cover  of 

matting-  . ... 

328.  Hydrocyon  goliath  : a large  fish  obtained 

from  the  Cataract  Congo  and  the  Upper 
Congo,  and  much  appreciated  for  its 
salmon-like  flesh.  It  is  armed  with 
tusk-like  teeth,  and  bites  fiercely 

329.  A cooking-pot  from  the  western  Equa- 

torial Congo  (Lukolela),  used  for  boiling 
manioc  flour  . ... 

330.  A dwarf  domestic  sheep  of  the  South 

Cameroons  region  (Ovis  jubatus  ?) 

331.  Congo  sheep  at  Bolobo 

332.  Babangi  dogs,  western  Equatorial  Congo 

333.  A bull  of  the  type  of  cattle  belonging  to 

the  Bayanzi  on  the  western  Equatorial 
Congo  (1894)  . ... 

334.  Herd  of  semi-wild  cattle  in  the  Bayaka 

country,  Lower  Kwango  River  . 

335.  The  handle  of  a hoe  from  the  Bapindi 

people,  upper  Kwilu  River,  South-West 
Congoland.  The  two  wooden  points 
are  used  as  a rake  : Torday  Collection 

336.  Native  women  making  cooking  - pots, 

northern  Congo  . ... 

337.  A dish  in  whitish  clay  of  the  Batende 

people  . . ... 

338.  A large  stewpan  in  whitish  clay  of  the 

Batende  or  Babuma  people  (lower 
Kasai  or  Kwa  River) 

339.  A cooking-pot  of  the  Bangala,  north- 

west Congo,  for  use  in  canoes.  (Fire  or 
charcoal  is  put  in  the  lower  receptacle) 

340.  Carved  and  incised  wooden  drinking-cup, 

central  Kasai  region : Torday  Collection 

341.  Wooden  cups  from  the  Bayaka  country, 

Kwango  River  : Torday  Collection 

342.  (1)  Native  spoon  from  Upper  Congo.  (2) 

An  axe-handle  from  the  Lukuga  River 
(Eastern  Cong'oland) 

343.  Wooden  spoons  from  Upper  Congo,  used 

for  eating  thick  porridge  of  manioc 
flour  . . ... 

344.  A fetish  shrine  (painted  in  four  colours) 

from  the  Congo  coast  region,  near 
Banana  . ... 

345.  A roadside  shrine,  Zombo  Plateau, 

Western  Congoland 

346.  Fetish  placed  at  entrance  to  village  on 

Zombo  Plateau,  to  drive  away  evil 
spirits  . . ... 

347.  A fetish  hut  at  the  entrance  to  a Zombo 

town  (Zombo  Plateau) 

348.  A carved  fetish  of  the  southern  Bambala 

people,  South-West  Congoland:  Torday 

349.  The  corpse  of  a woman  decorated  and 

laid  out  for  burial  (Bopoto,  northern 
Congo)  . ... 


xiii 

SOURCE  PAGE 

Photograph  lent  by  Torday  . . 614 


Photograph  from  specimen  in 
British  Museum  . . -615 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . .617 

Photograph  from  specimen  in 
British  Museum  . . .618 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 619 

Drawing  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston  . 621 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 623 

» » >>  • 624 


. 625 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt  . . 626 

Photograph  of  specimen  from 
B.M.S.  Collection  . . . 627 

Photograph  from  specimen  in  Gren- 
fell’s Collection  . . . 627 

„ „ ,,  628 

. 628 

. . . . . 629 

Photograph  from  specimen  in 
British  Museum  . . . 630 

From  specimen  in  B.M.S.  Collection  631 

Photograph  from  specimen  in 
Congo  Museum  at  Tervueren  . 633 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 638 

Photograph  from  B.M.S.  Collection  639 
Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 641 

. 643 

Photograph  by  William  Forfeitt  . 645 


XIV 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

350.  A funeral  dance  : wives  wailing-  under 

the  eaves  of  houses 

351.  The  funeral  of  Chief  Ekwayulu  at 

Bolobo  . ... 

352.  A funeral  dance  amongst  the  Bapoto, 

northern  Congo  . ... 

353.  Native  graveyard  at  Palabala,  near 

Matadi,  cataract  region.  (Note  the 
graves  marked  out  with  empty  gin 
bottles  and  strewn  with  empty  rum 
demijohns,  besides  crockery) 

354.  Grave  of  native  chief,  Monsembe,  Ban- 

gala  country  . ... 

355.  Grave  of  a native  notability  in  the  Buja 

country,  near  Bumba,  northern  Congo 

356.  (1)  Fetish  brush  or  whisk  made  of  a 

bushbuck’s  tail.  (2)  An  executioner’s 
knife.  Both  from  northern  Congo 

357.  A fetish  mask  from  the  Bayaka  country, 

Kwango  River  . ... 

358.  A Bayaka  friction-drum  from  the  lower 

Kwango  . ... 

359.  Nkimba  boys,  north  bank  of  the  Lower 

Congo  (Basundi  people)  . 

360.  Boys  of  Bopoto,  Upper  Congo,  bathing 

and  playing  on  beach 

361.  “Woman’s  work”:  a woman  of  the 

northern  Congo,  near  Bopoto,  making 
pots  . . ... 

362.  Woman  as  a beast  of  burden  in  the 

Babangi  countries.  (Lukolela  women 
carrying  loads  of  firewood) 

363.  Bakongo  woman  and  child,  Kibokolo, 

Zombo  Plateau  . ... 

364.  Thb  wedding  of  Bungudi,  a Mission- 

steamer  engineer.  (Bungudi  was  a 
Muteke  of  Stanley  Pool)  . 

365.  A pot  from  the  Lower  Congo,  used  for  the 

dispensing  of  beer  at  a wedding  feast . 

366.  A fly-whisk  always  carried  by  head-men, 

chiefs,  or  public  orators  at  trials  held 
among  the  natives  of  the  lower  Mubangi 

367.  A clay  pot  from  the  Babangi  or  Bayanzi 

people  of  Lukolela  in  which  the  Nka 
decoction  has  been  mixed  for  an  ordeal 

368.  B.M.S.  house  at  Bolobo,  built  on  the 

place  at  which  ordeals  were  adminis- 
tered twenty  years  ago 

369.  Specimens  of  executioner’s  choppers  and 

knives  from  the  Bangala  country, 
northern  Congo  . ... 

370.  An  executioner’s  scimitar  from  the  lower 

Aruwimi  . ... 

371.  A Bahuana  executioner’s  sword,  South- 

West  Congoland  : Torday  Collection  . 

372.  Staff  of  office  of  the  Baluba  chief  Kay- 

umba,  Lake  Kasale,  northern  Kitanga 
country  : Torday  Collection 

37 3.  The  official  staff  of  the  chief  of  Bulu  on 

the  Lualaba-Congo  : Captain  S.  L. 
Hinde  . . ... 


SOURCE 

PAGE 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

646 

99  9999  • 

647 

Photograph  by  William  Forfeitt 

651 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

653 

9 9 99  99  • • 

654 

99  99  99  • • 

657 

Photograph  from  B.M.S.  Collection 

662 

Photograph  from  Torday  Collection 

664 

9 9 99  99 

666 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

668 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt 

673 

99  9999  • • 

675 

Photograph  by  Rev.  R.  D.  Darby  . 

678 

Photograph  by  Rev.  Thomas  Lewis 

680 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

681 

Photograph  from  example  in  B.  M.  S. 
Collection  . ... 

683 

99  99  99 

688 

99  99  99 

690 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

691 

))  5>  ft  • 

694 

Photograph  from  specimen  in 
B.M.S.  Collection  . 

695 

696 

698 

701 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

374.  The  “ Linguisteiro  ” or  spokesman  of  a 

Lower  Congo  chief : sketched  by  Sir 
Harry  Johnston  in  1882 

375.  A professional  dancing  woman  commenc- 

ing her  performance  (Bopoto,  northern 
Congo)  . ... 

376.  A funeral  dance,  northern  Congo  . 

377.  A funeral  dance  amongst  the  Babangi  . 

378.  Masked  dancers,  Zombo  Plateau  . 

379.  A tom-tom  from  the  Balovale  people  at 

the  south-westernmost  corner  of  the 
Congo  basin,  near  the  sources  of  the 
Zambezi,  formerly  used  by  the  chief 
Kakenge  to  summon  his  subjects 

380.  The  drums  of  the  Bayanzi  (Bolobo) 

381.  Friction-drum  from  the  south  Bambala 

country  (South-West  Congoland) : Tor- 
day  Collection  . . . . 

382.  Natural  and  artificial  rattles  from  central 

Congo  basin.  (1)  is  the  section  of  a 
seed  pod  of  an  Albizzia  tree  ; (2)  and 
(2)  are  rattles  made  from  split  canes  . 

383.  A xylophone  from  the  Bangala  country, 

northern  Congo  : upper  surface,  with 
continuous  resonator  behind 

384.  Another  type  of  xylophone,  back  view, 

showing  separate  resonators  probably 
made  from  very  large  seed  pods,  Ban- 
gala  country  . ... 

385.  A gong  of  iron  from  the  Baluba  people 

(South-Central  Congoland) : Torday 
Collection  . ... 

386.  A wooden  flute  from  the  Mongwandi 

country,  upper  Mongala  River  (prob- 
ably made  in  rough  imitation  of  human 
thigh-bone)  . ... 

387.  A whistle  or  flute  of  wood  from  the  Kasai 

388.  Pan-pipes  of  the  Bangondo  people,  South- 

Central  Congoland : Torday  Collection 

389.  A musical  bow  from  the  Kasai  (top 

figure)  ; another  type  of  musical  bow 
from  the  central  Aruwimi,  with  two 
strings  and  pegs 

390.  A metallophone  from  the  Balua  country, 

South-West  Congoland  : Torday  Col- 
lection . . ... 

391.  Harp  of  the  Ababua  people,  Wele  River 

392.  A Bangala  harp  from  the  northern  Congo 

393.  A harp  of  the  Bajande  people,  lower 

Aruwimi  basin  . ... 

394.  A Bayanzi  guitar  from  Bolobo 

395.  A lyre  from  the  Nyamnyam  (Makarka) 

people  of  the  Wele  River  . 

396.  A zither  from  the  Bajande  tribe,  lower 

Aruwimi.  (A  somewhat  similar  instru- 
ment comes  from  western  Tanganyika) 


XV 

SOURCE  PAGE 

. . . . . 702 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt  . . 703 

>>  >>  >>  • • 7°4 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 705 

Photograph  by  Rev.  Thomas  Lewis  707 


Photograph  from  specimen  in  the 

British  Museum  . . . 708 

Photograph  by  Grenfell  . . 709 

. . . . . 710 

B.M.S.  Collection  . . 7 1 1 

Photograph  from  specimen  in  Congo 
Museum,  Tervueren  . .712 


„ „ » 712 

Photograph  lent  by  Torday  . . 713 


Photograph  from  specimen  in  Congo 
Museum,  Tervueren  . . 714 

. 715 

Photograph  lent  by  Torday  . . 715 


Photograph  from  specimens  in  the 
Congo  Museum,  Tervueren  . 716 

Photograph  lent  by  Torday  . . 717 

Photograph  from  a specimen  in  the 
Congo  Museum,  Tervueren  . 718 

„ „ „ 7i9 

„ 1,  » 7T9 

Sketch  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston  . 720 

From  a specimen  in  the  Congo 
Museum,  Tervueren  . .721 

From  a specimen  in  the  Grenfell 
Collection  . ...  723 


XVI 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

397.  A cup  from  the  Kasai : Torday  Collec- 

tion . . . 

398.  An  ancient  rock  shelter  in  the  cataract 

region  (the  Tor  at  Palabala) 

399.  A Raphia  palm  in  flower  and  seed.  (The 

Raphia  palm  in  several  species  is  the 
principal  material  used  in  Congo  house- 
building) . ... 

400.  Making  palm-frond  thatch  at  a mission 

station  . ... 

401.  A typical  house  of  the  Congo  cataract 

region  . . ... 

402.  Native  village  on  Kakongo  coast,  near 

Kabinda  . ... 

403.  A village  in  the  Nkusu  country,  king- 

dom of  Kongo,  south  of  cataract 
region  . . . . 

404.  Riverside  town,  northern  Congo,  near 

Bumba.  . . . . 

405.  The  village  of  chief  Senga  at  Yakusu, 

near  Stanley  Falls 

406.  Style  of  house  near  the  Motima  River 

(between  the  Mongala  basin  and  the 
northern  Congo) 

407.  A typical  village  of  the  interior  of  the 

northern  Congo  (Bopoto  district) 

408.  House-building,  Bolobo 

409.  Stool  from  Lake  Mweru,  South-East 

Congoland  . ... 

410.  A head-rest  for  supporting  the  head 

during  sleep,  northern  Bambala  country, 
South-West  Congoland 

41 1.  A stool  ornamented  with  brass  nails  and 

hung  with  a bell  and  white  beads, 
Ngombe  country,  Upper  Congo  . 

412.  Vase  for  drinking-water,  from  theBabuma 

people,  near  the  Mfini  River : Torday 
Collection  . ... 

413.  Head-rest  or  pillow,  and  wooden  powder- 

flask,  Bangala  people,  north-western 
Congo  . . ... 

414.  Bwela  houses,  near  Motima  River,  show- 

ing roofs  of  palm  midribs 

415.  A view  in  a Bwela  town,  northern  Congo, 

to  show  nearly  continuous  houses  built 
in  streets  . ... 

416.  Entrance  into  a stockaded  town  of  the 

Ngombe  people  (the  lady  in  the  fore- 
ground is  Mrs.  William  Forfeitt) 

417.  Banana-leaf  hut  with  porch,  called  by 

Grenfell  a Burumbi  dwelling.  This 
style  prevails  as  far  east  as  the  slopes 
of  Ruwenzori  . ... 

418.  In  a Banalya  village,  Aruwimi  River;  to 

show  conical  steeple-crowned  houses 
roofed  with  leaves 

419.  A stool  from  the  Banalya  country,  Aru- 

wimi River,  covered  with  beaten  copper 


SOURCE  PAGE 

. 725 

Photograph  by  Rev.  K.  J.  Pettersen  727 


Drawing  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston  . 

728 

Photograph  by  William  Forfeitt  . 

729 

Drawing  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston  . 

732 

n n n • 

733 

Photograph  by  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Lewis  . ... 

735 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

7 36 

n j > • • 

737 

Photograph  by  William  Forfeitt 

740 

»>  >>  • 
Photograph  by  Grenfell 

741 

742 

Photograph  from  example  in  Torday 
Collection 

744 

n n n 

745 

Photograph  from  object  in  B.  M.  S. 
Collection  . ... 

746 

747 

Photograph  from  object  in  B.M.S. 
Collection  . ... 

748 

Photograph  by  William  Forfeitt 

749 

>>  M JJ 

750 

>>  >> 

75 1 

Photograph  by  the  late  Major 
Sitwell  . ... 

752 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

754 

Example  in  B.M.S.  Ethnographical 
Collection  . ... 

757 

LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


XVII 


NO.  TITLE 

420.  A six-pronged  stick  used  as  a back-rest, 

northern  Congo.  (This  illustration  also 
shows  pile  cloth  of  the  Bakuba  country, 
which  makes  its  way  in  trade  to  the 
northern  Congo,  and  also  the  curiously 
woven  caps  of  the  Ngombe  people) 

421.  A B.M.S.  house  built  on  piles,  Bopoto, 

northern  Congo  . ... 

422.  A wrestling  match  on  the  northern 

Congo  . . ... 

423.  A wrestling  match  at  Bopoto,  northern 

Congo  . . ... 

424.  ( 1 ) Boomerang-shaped  executioner’s  knife, 

Stanley  Falls  region.  (2)  A war-axe 
mounted  on  long  wooden  handle,  from 
northern  Congo  ; probably  derived  from 
the  halberd  idea  of  Lubaland 

425.  Throwing-knives  from  the  Aruwimi  River 

426.  Antelope-skin  quiver  and  arrows  used  by 

the  Pygmies  of  the  Ituri  Forest  . 

427.  Hunting  and  war  arrows  (usually  poi- 

soned) from  the  north-eastern  Congo 
(Mongo  country) 

428.  Ngombe  war-shield,  northern  Congo 

429.  Reverse  side  of  Ngombe  shield,  northern 

Congo . . ... 

430.  Lokele  war-shield,  north-eastern  Congo  ; 

back  and  front  view 

431.  Shields  from  the  Mongo  country,  north- 

central  Congo  . ... 

432.  War-spears  (Bangala,  Bayanzi,  Basoko) 

from  the  northern  Congo.  (The  barbed 
spear  is  used  in  hunting)  . 

433.  “Flounder-shaped”  knives  of  the  Bay- 

anzi (Wanguli)  of  the  lower  Kasai : 
Torday  Collection 

434.  Scimitar-shaped  sword  from  the  Nyam- 

nyam  country,  Wele  River,  and  also 
knife  from  the  Bamanga  country,  Stan- 
ley Falls  . ... 

435.  (1)  Bayanzi  chopper-sword.  (2)  Dagger 

with  wooden  sheath 

436.  Knives  from  Banalya,  Aruwimi  River, 

with  ivory  handles  (incised patterns)  and 
riveted  with  brass 

437.  Basoko  dagger  in  sheath,  lower  Aruwimi 

438.  An  Ngombe  man  of  the  northern  Congo 

with  hippopotamus  harpoon  and  float . 

439.  A hunting-spear  of  the  Lokele  people  with 

detachable  spear-head 

440.  Fishermen  with  their  seine  nets  on  the 

northern  Congo  (Bopoto)  . 

441.  Letting  down  fishing-net  at  Bopoto 

442.  Synodontis  decorus , a black-spotted  fish 

from  Stanley  Pool  and  the  Upper 
Congo,  about  nine  inches  long : eaten 
by  the  natives  . ... 

443.  Mastacembelus  congicus , an  eel-like  fish  of 

the  Upper  Congo,  good  to  eat,  but 
regarded  by  the  natives  as  a kind  of 
water-snake  . ... 


SOURCE 


PAGE 


Object  in  B.M.S.  Collection  . 

. 758 

Photograph  by  Grenfell 

. 760 

Photograph  by  William  Forfeitt 

• 763 

yy  yy  yy 

. 764 

From  B.M.S.  Ethnographical  Col- 
lection . ... 

765 

Grenfell  Collection 

766 

yy  yy  ... 

767 

yy  yy  ... 

768 

yy  yy  ... 

769 

yy  yy  ... 

770 

B.M.S.  Ethnographical  Collection. 

771 

772 

77  3 

• 774 


Grenfell  Collection 

>>  • 

>>  >> 

>>  if 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt 
Photo  lent  by  Lawson  Forfeitt 
Photo  by  William  Forfeitt 

yy  yy  yy  • 


775 

776 

777 

778 

779 

780 

78 1 

782 


From  photo  lent  by  Mr.  G.  A.  Bou- 
lenger,  f.r.s.  . . . 783 


784 


XV111 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

444.  Labeo  falcifer,  a strange  carp-like  fish 

from  the  Lower  and  Upper  Congo,  with 
a “drunkard’s  nose”  ; really  a nuptial 
ornament  in  the  breeding  season.  This 
type  is  frequently  caught  in  the  baskets 
of  the  weirs  . ... 

445.  Adzing  and  finishing  a canoe  at  Ilingi 

(Ngombe  country,  on  the  bank  of 
northern  Congo) 

446.  Mission  canoe,  Bopoto 

447.  Bateke  pottery,  Stanley  Pool  ; a good 

deal  used  in  commerce  with  the  northern 
Congo . . ... 

448.  Bateke  pottery  from  near  Stanley  Pool  . 

449.  Bateke  pottery,  Stanley  Pool.  (This  and 

the  preceding  article  were  at  one  time 
much  exported  from  the  Bateke  country 
to  the  Mubangi  River) 

450.  Grass-cloth  squares  used  as  a currency 

on  the  north  bank  of  the  Lower 
Congo  . . ... 

451.  Northern  Bambala  purses  for  carrying 

jimbu  shells,  made  of  fibre  in  imitation 
of  pottery  (South-West  Congoland) 

452.  Examples  of  native  currency  on  Upper 

Congo  : — ( 1 ) A brass  rod  equal  to  about 
160  small  brass  rods  (this  at  one  time 
was  the  price  of  a wife).  (2)  Ordinary 
brass  rods  valued  at  from  five  to  twenty 
to  the  franc,  according  to  the  locality. 
(3)  Specimens  of  “shoka”  or  spear-head 
money  made  of  iron 

453.  Proceeds  of  a collection  at  a Baptist 

Mission  church  on  the  Upper  Congo 
(taken  especially  to  illustrate  the  brass 
rods  which  form  the  native  currency). 
Besides  brass  rods,  the  offerings  consist 
of  an  umbrella,  cloths,  soap,  and  a 
few  coins  . ... 

454.  Woman  bringing  palm  nuts  for  trade, 

northern  Congo  . ... 

455.  An  ornamental  pot  from  the  Basoko  dis- 

trict, lower  Aruwimi 

456.  Native  iron  “ bloom  ” from  Banalya, 

middle  Aruwimi  River 

457.  A Bakwese  mat  from  the  upper  Kwilu, 

South-West  Congoland 

458.  Flour-sifter  (1)  and  basket  (2)  from  San 

Salvador,  to  show  basket-work  with 
cane  and  grass  . ... 

459.  Drinking-cup  made  of  closely  plaited 

string,  Babunda  people,  Kwilu  River, 
South-Central  Congoland 

460.  Luba  cloth  of  raised  pile,  made  from 

Raphia-palm  bast,  Kwilu  River,  South- 
West  Congoland 

461.  Specimen  of  Bakuba  cloth  (Sankuru 

River)  with  raised  pile 

462.  Bapindi  pile  cloth  (South-West  Congo- 

land) . . ... 


SOURCE  PAGE 

From  photo  lent  by  Mr.  G.  A.  Bou- 
lenger,  f.r.s.  . . . 785 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt  . . 786 

>>  >>  >>  • • 787 

Photograph  lent  by  Mr.  Torday  . 790 

33  » „ 79 1 

„ „ » 791 

From  B.M.S.  Ethnographical  Col- 
lection . ...  792 

Torday  Collection  . . . 793 


Photo  lent  by  B.M.S.  . . . 794 

3,  ...  795 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt  . . 796 

From  example  in  Congo  Museum, 
Tervueren  . ...  798 

Grenfell  Collection  . . . 798 

Torday  Collection  . . . 799 

From  B.M.S.  Ethnographical  Col- 
lection . ...  800 

Torday  Collection,  British  Museum  801 

,,  „ ,,  802 

B.M.S.  Ethnographical  Collection  . 803 

Torday  Collection  . . . 804 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


xix 


NO.  TITLE 

463.  Finely  woven  cloth  from  the  northern 

Luba  country  (Kasai-Lulua) 

464.  A wooden  statuette  from  Kabinda,  near 

the  mouth  of  the  Congo  . 

465.  (1)  A thick,  rectangular  stick  of  white 

wood,  4 feet  long  and  4 inches  broad  ; 
the  handle  contains  a small  fragment  of 
glass  bead  fitted  in  as  an  ornament. 
The  black  figures  in  relief  on  the  white 
ground  evidently  tell  a story.  This 
comes  from  the  cataract  region  of  the 
Congo.  (2)  Another  picture  - stick, 
thinner  and  more  slab-like  than  the 
preceding  . ... 

466.  Native  boy  who  has  made  a model  of  a 

river  steamer,  Bopoto  . 

467.  Model  of  a house  made  by  a native  boy 

at  Bopoto  . ... 

468.  Native  pottery  drying  in  the  sun,  Bopoto, 

northern  Congo  . ... 

469.  Burning  and  glazing  pottery,  Bopoto 

470.  Pot  from  the  Congo  coast  region  of 

Mayumbe,  with  blackish  lustre  . 

471.  Pot  from  the  coast  region  of  Mayumbe  . 

472.  An  ornamental  water-pot  of  the  Azande  ; 

from  the  upper  Wele 

473.  A corner  of  Tanganyika  near  the  northern 

end  . . ... 

474.  A water-pot  from  the  Sango  country, 

middle  Mubangi  River 

475.  A water-jar  with  handle,  from  Stanley 

Falls  region  (near  Aruwimi).  The  clay 
pot  is  surrounded  by  a wicker  casing  of 
palm-rind,  the  surface  of  which  is  more 
or  less  plastered  over 

476.  The  crocodile’s  opportunity  : carriers 

wading  across  a tributary  of  the  west- 
ern Congo  . ... 

477.  The  western  Congo  (above  Matadi) 

478.  The  Rev.  William  Forfeitt  . 

479.  A bamboo  at  Wathen  Station 

480.  Crinum  lilies,  Zombo  Plateau  (3,000  ft.)  . 

481.  Cyathea  (?)  tree-ferns  of  South-West 

Congoland(alt.  3,000  ft.  approximately) 

482.  Tree-ferns  at  Kibokolo,  on  the  Zombo 

Plateau  (alt.  3,000  ft.) 

483.  Man-eating  Crocodile  ( C, niloticus ) killed 

at  Bopoto  . ... 

484.  Polypterus  weeksii , discovered  by  Rev. 

J.  H.  Weeks,  B.M.S. 

485.  Polypterus  ornatipinnis  : collected  by  the 

Rev.  J.  H.  Weeks 

486.  Tetrodon  mbu , a handsomely  marked  fish 

of  the  Upper  Congo  and  Mubangi, 
about  twenty  inches  long 

487.  Anabas  weeksii , discovered  by  Rev.  J.  H. 

Weeks.  This  fish  belongs  to  the  family 
of  the  climbing  perches  (of  Ceylon) 


SOURCE  PAGE 

B.M.S.  Ethnographical  Collection  . 805 

From  example  in  Congo  Museum, 
Tervueren  . ...  806 


99  99 

807 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt 

. 808 

99  99  99 

. 809 

99  99  99  • 

. 810 

99  99  99 

. 81 1 

Congo  Museum,  Tervueren  . 

. 812 

Grenfell  Collection 

. 815 

9999  • • 

. 816 

From  a photograph  by  a German 
officer  . ...  817 

Grenfell  Collection 

. 818 

>>  tt  ... 

820 

Photo  by  Rev.  Thomas  Lewis 

822 

Photo  by  Rev.  E.  Domenjoz  . 

824 

Photo  by  Mr.  E.  Jenkins,  Red  Hill 

845 

. 

903 

Photo  by  Rev.  Thos.  Lewis,  B.M.S. 

907 

>>  tt  tt 

908 

9 9 99  99 

909 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt 

929 

Photo  from  specimen  in  British 
Museum  . ... 

93 1 

tt  tt  ft 

932 

tt  tt  tt 

934 

99  99  99 

935 

XX 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


NO.  TITLE 

488.  Pelmatochromis  tceniatus , a fish  of  the 

Upper  Congo  : collected  by  Rev.  J.  H. 
Weeks  . . ... 

489.  (1)  Polypterus  congicus , the  polypterid  of 

Tanganyika,  also  found  in  the  Upper 
and  Lower  Congo  by  the  late  Dr.  Hol- 
man Bentley,  B.  M.S.  (2)  Barilius 
\ weeksii , a small  fish  of  the  Upper 
Congo  . . ... 

490.  Dutch  trader  purchasing  ivory  at  Bu- 

mangi,  northern  Congo.  About  1890  . 

491.  Bube  people  of  Fernando  Po,  north  end 

of  the  island  . ... 

492.  Flat-headed  spear  and  barbed  lance  of 

the  Bube.  These  weapons  are  made 
of  wood.  Round  the  spear,  which  is 
used  for  fetish  purposes,  monkeys’ 
skulls  are  hung.  (These  specimens, 
collected  by  Baptist  missionaries,  are 
now  in  the  British  Museum) 

493.  A primitive  sail : Raphia  frond  stuck  in 

canoe  . . ... 

494.  Shell  ornaments  of  the  Bube 

495.  An  affluent  of  the  western  Congo  in  the 

Cataract  region 

496.  Baptist  Mission  steamer  Endeavour 


SOURCE  PAGE 

Photo  from  specimen  in  British 
Museum  . ...  936 


Photo  lent  by  Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger, 

F.R.S.  . . . . 937 

Photo  by  William  Forfeitt  . *945 

Photo  by  the  late  Mr.  Sam.  Hall  . 951 


Photo  from  specimens  in  British 
Museum  . ...  956 

Drawing  by  Sir  H.  H.  Johnston  . 958 

Photo  from  specimens  in  British 
Museum  . ...  959 

Photo  by  Rev.  Thos.  Lewis  . . 963 

Photo  by  Rev.  John  Howell  . . 966 


MAPS  IN  VOL.  II 

Map  showing  distribution  of  Congo  Pygmies  of  more  or  less  pure  type  living  apart 

from  the  other  tribes  as  a prominent  Pygmy  element  in  the  population  . 499 

Ethnographical  Map  of  Central  Africa  : by  Sir  H.  H.  Johnston  and  J.  W. 

Addison  ......  End  of  Volume 


GEORGE  GRENFELL 

AND  THE  CONGO 


CHAPTER  XXI 

ANTHROPOLOGY 

THE  oldest  indigenous  race  of  man  in  the  Congo  basin 
is  no  doubt  represented  by  the  Pygmies.  What  may 
have  been  the  length  of  period  during  which  the  whole 
of  the  Congo  basin  has  been  inhabited  by  the  human  genus  we 
do  not  yet  know.  It  is  quite  conceivable  that  long  after  the 
rest  of  Africa  was  thickly  settled  with  mankind,  the  inner  basin 
of  the  Congo  still  remained  in  too  lake-like  or  swampy  a con- 
dition to  admit  of  human  habitation ; or  the  density  of  the  forests, 
which  succeeded  the  shallow  water  of  the  sinking  sea  and  the 
swamps  of  pandanus  and  palms  growing  up  out  of  the  mud,  may 
have  been  so  great  at  first  as  to  daunt  the  human  pioneers.  For 
man  of  the  genus  Homo  had  long  ceased  to  be  a forest  animal 
before  he  reached  Africa  from  his  Asiatic  centre  of  evolution, 
and  the  primitive  negroid  type  that  first  peopled  Africa  must 
have  taken  some  time  to  regain  an  aptitude  for  the  forest. 

So  far,  no  stone  implements  have  been  found  in  the  central 
basin  of  the  Congo,  east  of  the  lower  Kasai,  and  it  is  quite 
conceivable  that  the  Congo  Pygmies  and  some  of  the  forest 
negro  tribes  (like  the  indigenes  of  Fernando  Po)  may  represent 
a form  of  culture  earlier  than  the  Stone  Age,  a stage  in  the 
development  of  civilization  in  which  implements,  utensils,  and 
weapons  were  made  from  bone,  shell,  thorn,  sinew,  and  skin  ; 
from  sticks,  reeds,  bamboo,  palm  rind,  and  fibre.  Undressed 
stones  or  pebbles  were  of  course  used  as  hammers.  Friable 
stones  were  even  perforated  (no  doubt  by  a twirling  stick  of 
wood  hardened  in  the  fire)  and  used  as  weights  on  the  handles 
°f  digging  sticks,  much  as  Bushmen  or  Hottentot  tribes  are 

II. — B 


498  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


said  to  use  them 
at  the  present 
day.  At  any 
rate,  round  per- 
forated stones  of 
this  kind  are 
occasionally  dug 
up  in  regions 
to  the  south  and 
south-west  of 
Lake  Tangan- 
yika, as  also  in 
parts  of  Nyasa- 
land,  and  these 
are  said  to  re- 
semble similar 
perforated  stones 
attributed  to 
Bushman  use  in 
South  Africa. 
In  the  cataract 
region  of  the 
Congo  stone  implements  are  fairly  abundant,  and  consist  of 
axe-heads  with  one  end 
broad,  spear-heads  or  jave- 
lins, arrow-heads  (some 
with  barbs),  and  double- 
headed axes  pointed  at 
both  ends.  These  imple- 
ments are  made  ( i ) of  flint, 
in  the  coast  region  near 
the  sea  ; (2)  haematite 

ironstone  ; (3)  quartz  ; (4) 
diorite  ; (5)  sandstone  ; 

(6)  chert  (Devonian  sand- 
stone). But  in  common 
with  the  stone  implements 
of  the  Zambezi  basin,  they 
are  said  to  be  of  a late  Paleo- 
lithic character  ; whereas 
the  stone  axes  and  other 
implements  discovered 
by  various  explorers 
in  the  eastern  valley  of 


251.  SKULL  OF  AN  ENGLISHMAN  (MALE)  FOR  COMPARISON 
WITH  THE  SKULLS  OF  CONGO  NEGROES 
(Royal  College  of  Surgeons.) 


252.  A MANBETTU  OR  MOMBUTU  SKULL  (MALE) 
FROM  N.  E.  CONGOLAND 
(Collected  by  Dr.  Schweinfurth  : Royal  College  of  Surgeons.) 


500  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


the  Mubangi-Wele  (especially  near  the  Bomokandi  River), 
along-  the  north  of  Congoland,  and  in  the  Bahr-al-Ghazal  are 
similar  to  those  found  in  the  valley  of  the  Nile  and  of  the 
Shari-Chad  region,  and  are  of  a decidedly  Neolithic  charac- 
ter ;x  in  any  case,  greatly  superior  (as  evidence  of  culture) 
to  the  stone  implements  of  the  cataract  Congo.2  These 
last  are  not  restricted  in  their  distribution  to  the  western 
Conoco  regions,  but  are  also  found  in  the  coast  region  of 
Angola  as  far  south  as  Mossamedes,  and  along  the  coast 

£>  o 


regions 

o 


of  Guinea. 

Stone  implements  have  been  found  in  the  valley  of  the 

upper  Aruwimi.  No 
doubt  they  have  been, 
or  will  be  shortly,  dis- 
covered on  the  Lunda 
Plateau,  and  elsewhere 
in  south  Congoland,  but 
so  far  the  only  indica- 
tions of  their  presence 
have  been  found  in 

western  Katanga  and 

... 

the  vicinity  of  Lake 
Mweru.  Nothing  has 
been  recorded  from  the 
central  Congo  basin, 
except  perhaps  in  the 
Kwa  valley  (lower 
Kasai),  where  several 
stone  scrapers  have  been 
picked  up. 

The  Pygmies  who  are 
still  dotted  about  this 
region  as  independent 
tribes,  or  who  are  met  with  in  various  degrees  of  hybridism 
with  the  taller  negroes,  are  evidently  the  relics  of  a primitive 
type  of  negro  which  at  one  period  inhabited  tropical  Africa 
from  the  southern  borders  of  the  Sahara  to  the  Zambezi-Congo 
water-parting,  and  from  the  east  coast  to  the  Atlantic.  At  any 
rate,  there  are  traces  at  the  present  time  of  an  original  Pygmy 
population  right  across  the  forest  belt  of  Equatorial  Africa, 
from  Mount  Elgon  (or  even  western  Galaland)  on  the  east, 


^."A^NEGRO  skull  (male)  from  the  west 

COAST  OF  AFRICA,  PROBABLY  ASHANTI 
(For  purposes  of  comparison.) 


1 These  have  been  amply  described  in  LAge  de  la  Pierre  au  Congo,  by  Dr. 
Xavier  Stainier  (published  by  the  Congo  Museum,  Brussels). 

2 These  indeed  are  of  much  the  same  character  as  the  stone  implements  found 
in  Ashanti. 


fwsl 


254.  GROUP  OF  BAMBUTE  DWARFS,  TAKEN  BY  GRENFELL  AT  BOMILI,  NEAR  THE  CONFLUENCE  OF 

THE  ARUWIMI  AND  NEPOKO 


U3RARY 
OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  Or  ILLINOIS 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


503 


to  the  Cameroons  on  the  west ; 1 * * * * * 7 and  when  we  come  to 
understand  better  the  anthropology  of  the  Guinea  coast-lands 
we  may  find  this  Pygmy  type  even  extending  as  far  west  as 
Portuguese  Guinea.  Traditions  among  the  Fula  and  other 
negroid  races  now  inhabiting  western  Nigeria  point  to  the 
former  existence  of  “red  dwarfs”  in  the  region  between  the 
northern  Niger  and  the  coast. 

The  Bushman  and  the  Congo  Pygmy  are  only  related  in 


255.  SKULL  OF  BAMBUTE  PYGMY  (MALE)  FROM  ITURI  FOREST,  N.E.  CONGO 
(Collected  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston.) 


1 Mr.  G.  L.  Bates,  the  well-known  naturalist,  who  resides  in  the  South  Cameroons 
country,  informs  me  there  is  a Pygmy  tribe  in  the  western  upper  Sanga  basin  known 
as  the  Bebaya’a  (“  great  hunters  ”).  Paul  Crampel  discovered  Pygmy  tribes  on  the 
upper  Ja  River  (South  Cameroons),  whose  name  he  gives  as  Bayaga.  These  may  be 
the  same  as  Bates’s  Bebaya’a  ; possibly  these  Pygmies  are  unwilling  to  pronounce  the 
k or  g,  like  the  Bambute  in  the  east.  To  the  north  of  the  Bayaga,  on  the  Nyong  or 

Batanga  River,  are  the  Pygmy  tribes  of  Banek  and  Bapiele. 

Along  the  upper  courses  of  the  Nyong  (Lombe)  and  the  Sananga  (Lorn),  in  the 
western  part  of  the  Baya  country,  there  is  the  dwarf  tribe  of  the  Bateke,  who  are 
probably  the  same  people  as  those  described  by  Koell ^(Polyglotta  Africana,  p.  12)  as 

“ Betsan”  or  “ Kenkob.”  In  the  Gaboon  region  south  of  the  Ogowe  River  as  far  as 
the  second  parallel  of  S.  Latitude  a scattered  Pygmy  race  is  found  dwelling  in  the 
forests  and  known  by  the  names  of  Babongo,  Balia,  or  Akoa.  All  descriptions  of  these 

dwarf  forest  dwellers  throughout  West  Central  Africa  unite  in  emphasizing  the  follow- 

ing points  : — Yellow  or  reddish-yellow  skin,  much  short,  “felted”  hair  on  body  of  a 
greyish-brown  or  yellowish  colour  (interspersed  sometimes  in  the  males  only  with 
coarse  black  curly  hairs)  ; flat,  broad  noses,  long  upper  lip,  and  body  well  proportioned, 
but  with  a short,  weak  neck.  The  height  of  the  adult  men  is  seldom  above  4 feet 

7 inches,  and  that  of  the  women  is  often  below  4 feet.  They  have  invariably  a very 


504  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

origin  in  so  far  as  each  type  is  a development — arrested  or 
divergent — of  the  negro  stock.  Structurally,  the  Congo  Pygmy 
is  much  more  nearly  connected  with  the  lower  types  of  black 
negro,  is  indeed  little  else  than  a primitive  and  also  somewhat  de- 
generate development  of  the  true  negro.  The  Hottentot  and 
Bushman  of  course  belong  to  the  Negro  species,  but  constitute 
such  a very  divergent  type  as  to  be  almost  of  sub-specific  rank. 

At  the  same  time,  it  is  possible  to  exaggerate  the  degree 
of  isolation  in  which  the  Bushman  stands1  as  apart  both  from 
Congo  Pygmy  and  other  breeds  of  true  negro.  It  might  be 
mentioned  incidentally  that  although  in  points  of  structure 
there  is  scarcely  any  suggestion  of  affinity  between  the  Pygmies 
and  the  Bushmen,  still,  female  Pygmies  do  occasionally  exhibit 
that  curious  development  of  the  buttocks  known  as  steatopygy 
which  is  so  monstrously  developed  in  the  Hottentots  and  some- 
what less  so  in  the  Bushmen.  This  feature,  however,  occurs 
sporadically  in  the  negro  races  of  the  Eastern  Sudan. 

The  southernmost  range  of  the  Congo  Pygmy  at  the 
present  day  is  more  or  less  limited  to  about  6°  30'  S.  Latitude. 
The  northern  and  western  limits  have  been  dealt  with  in 
chapter  xiv.,  and  in  the  note  on  page  503.  The  eastern  limit 
of  the  pure  Pygmy  race  at  the  present  day  is  the  eastern  flank 
of  the  Albertine  Rift  valley  down  to  the  north  end  of  Tangan- 
yika. But  the  dwarf  peoples  of  the  Lake  Rudolf  and  western 
Gala  region  may  belong  to  this  stock.  The  Kasekere  tribe 
of  dwarf  hunters  found  in  south-east  Angola  and  first  recorded 
by  Serpa  Pinto  are  thought  by  some  authorities  to  belong 
to  the  Pygmy  race  rather  than  to  the  Bushman.  So  little 
is  known  about  them  that  the  point  is  hardly  worth  discussing. 

The  physical  characteristics  of  the  Congo  Pygmies  have 
been  touched  on  in  previous  pages  of  this  work  ; but  additional 
information  on  the  subject  is  here  given. 

Lord  Mountmorres  supplies  the  following  description  of  the 
Bambute  Pygmies  in  the  forests  of  the  Aruwimi-Ituri : — 

“ The  men  are  4 feet  2 inches  to  4 feet  6 inches  in  height,  have 
large,  brachycephalic  heads  and  long,  black  beards,  which  grow  freely, 
and  make  them  remarkable  in  a region  where  almost  all  the  popula- 

strong  skin  odour,  that  of  the  negro,  “ only  more  so.55  When  standing  on  their  well- 
shaped sturdy  little  legs,  the  big  toe  turns  inwards,  away  from  the  second  toe. 

What  is  further  remarkable  is  the  association  of  certain  widespread  tribal  names 
with  both  Pygmies  and  dissimilar  negroes  of  ordinary  or  tall  stature.  Thus  though 
there  are  Bateke,  Bayaka,  Babongo,  and  Balia  Pygmies  in  the  north-west,  there  are 
also  Bateke,  Bayaka,  Babongo,  Balila  (besides  Batwa,  Baputu,  Barumbe)  tribes  of 
normal  height.  These  may  have  displaced  Pygmies  and  inherited  their  tribal  names. 

1 The  Hottentot,  though  a very  old  cross,  seems  to  be  little  else  than  the  result 
of  an  ancient  mingling  between  the  Nilotic  negro  or  Bantu  and  the  Bushman. 


256.  CHIEF  SENGA  AND  LOKELE  PEOPLE  AT  YAKUSU 

(The  European  is  the  late  Rev.  Harry  White.)  The  Lokele  of  the  N.E.  Congo  bend  are  rather  of  the  Forest  Negro  type— big  torso,  long  arms,  short  legs. 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


507 


tion  is  clean  shaven.  The  women  are  considerably  shorter  than  the 
men.  Both  sexes  run  practically  naked.  There  is  little  or  no  tatooage 
amongst  them.  . . . They  live  sequestered  in  the  depth  of  the  forest  in 
small  groups  of  tiny  huts.  . . 

Lord  Mountmorres  states  that  he  saw  in  the  vicinity 
of  Avakubi  a more  primitive  and  simian  type  of  Pygmy  than 
the  Bambute.  These  he  first  took  to  be  a group  of  chimpan- 
zis,  springing  from  branch  to  branch,  and  stopping  from 
curiosity  to  look  at  the  intruder  in  exactly  the  same  way  as  do 
the  larger  apes.  He  would  have  continued  to  think  them 
chimpanzis  but  that  they  shot  some  tiny  arrows  which  fell  close 
to  him.  They  appeared  to  be  at  most  3 feet  9 inches  in  height, 
and  to  have  exaggeratedly  long  arms.  They  were  absolutely 
unclothed,  had  features  as  flat  and  foreheads  as  receding  as 
a chimpanzi.  The  same  writer  states  that  M.  Wieslet,  of 
Avakubi,  had  also  seen  these  tree-dwelling  Pygmies,  and  had 
noted  their  shelters  or  habitations  built  in  the  forks  of  trees. 

Lord  Mountmorres  in  another  part  of  his  interesting  Congo 
explorations  verified  the  existence  of  a dwarf  tribe  in  western 
Congoland  : — 

“ Amongst  the  indigenous  people  of  the  Lake  Ntomba  district  are 
the  Bua,  a dwarf  tribe  leading  a hunting  life.  In  colour  they  are  much 
lighter  than  the  other  inhabitants  of  the  neighbourhood.  They  are 
small  of  stature,  well  built  and  wiry,  and  carry  a diminutive  bow  and 
vast  quantities  of  primitive  little  poisoned  arrows,  for  the  most  part 
without  either  quills  or  barb,  consisting  simply  of  a short  length 
of  sharpened  cane  dipped  in  a liquid  poison,  a vegetable  extract  which 
they  carry  in  little  pottery  bottles  round  their  shoulders.  They  dis- 
charge these  arrows  . . . with  almost  incredible  rapidity,  and  one  little 
fellow  in  order  to  display  his  skill  shot  some  twenty  arrows  in  such 
quick  succession  that  he  had  fired  the  last  before  the  first  had  reached 
the  ground.  These  dwarfs  are  clearly  very  closely  related  to  the 
dwarf  tribes  that  one  meets  amongst  the  Aruwimi  peoples  and  in 
the  eastern  province.” 

According  to  Mr.  S.  P.  Verner,  the  Batwa  Pygmies  in  the 
north-western  Luba  country  (between  Kasai  and  Lulua)  speak 
a language  which  more  resembles  the  gabblings  of  an  ape  than 
the  ordered  speech  of  the  intelligent  Bantu.  These  Pygmies 
do  absolutely  no  agricultural  work,  devoting  themselves  en- 
tirely to  hunting.  They  keep  yellow,  diminutive  dogs,  with 
wooden  bells.  Verner  never  heard  of  cannibalism  or  the  prac- 
tice of  eating  dogs  amongst  these  people.  The  bow  of  these 
Pygmies  is  made  from  a strong  and  tough  tree,  the  colour  of 
the  heart  of  which  is  bright  crimson.  The  bow-string  is  a 
strip  of  rind  from  the  raphia  palm.  The  arrows  here  are  not 


508  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

tipped  with  iron,  nor  furnished  with  any  feathery  barb.  The 
arrow-head  is  a sharp  needle  of  bamboo,  the  point  of  which  is 
thickly  smeared  with  a poison  said  to  be  derived  from  a 
euphorbia.  The  juice  from  the  root  of  this  poison  tree  is 
boiled  until  it  becomes  a black,  sticky  slime.  It  is  extremely 
deadly  and  rapid  in  its  effects.  The  average  height  of  fifty  grown 
men  of  these  Batwa  was  4 feet  4 inches.  Seven  adult  men,  how- 
ever, averaged  less  than  3 feet  9 inches  high,  whilst  on  the  other 
hand  five  of  them  were  over  4 feet  6 inches.  Eight  women  aver- 
aged just  under  4 feet.  The  prevailing  colour  was  light  choco- 
late-brown. The  older  men  wore  scanty  beards.  The  mean 
cranial  index  of  the  skulls  of  eight  adult  males  was  eighty-one 
degrees.  The  head  hair  was  a shade  of  greyish-brown}  Verner 
declares  that  the  Pygmies’  sense  of  smell  was  highly  developed, 
nearly  as  keen  as  that  of  a dog. 

Regarding  their  language,  he  says  that  it  is  strongly  ono- 
matopoeic. The  names  of  animals  are  made  of  sounds  which  are 
supposed  to  imitate  them  in  some  way.  Thus,  an  elephant  is 
called  humba-humba , a snake  is  luwilya-wilya?  Their  own  vo- 
cabulary is  said  to  be  much  more  limited  than  that  of  the  Bantu. 

Just  as  there  is  an  underlying  Bushman  element  in  western 
and  southern  Nyasaland,  and  an  undefined  dwarf  negroid  type 
in  so  much  of  eastern  and  north-eastern  Africa,  so  the  Congo 
Pygmy  element  permeates  the  population  of  well-nigh  all  the 
Congo  basin,  much  of  the  Gaboon  and  Cameroons,  a portion  of 
the  Bahr-al-Ghazal,  and  the  Uganda  Protectorate  as  far  east  as 
Elgon.  There  are  half-and-half  types  resembling  the  Pygmies 
in  many  physical  characteristics,  but  of  medium  stature  and 
improved  culture.  Such  for  example  are  some  of  the  Mongo 
or  northern  Balolo  people,  possibly  also  the  Wanda3  between 
the  Lulua  River  and  the  Lubi,  a proportion  of  the  Bayaka  and 
other  peoples  of  the  lower  and  middle  Kwango  and  the  lower 
Kwila,  and  the  Bakoa  or  Bakwa,  an  agricultural  people  living 
between  Stanley  Pool  and  the  Kwango  River. 

In  the  Aruwimi  and  Mubangi-Wele4  basins,  there  are 
many  evidences  of  a Pygmy  element  in  the  population  due  to 
ancient  or  recent  crossing  between  the  dwarf  types  and  the  big 

1 This  is  a constant  feature  in  the  true  Congo  Pygmy.  Very  often  the  hair  of  the 
occiput  and  forehead  is  red,  and  that  of  the  back  part  of  the  head,  greyish-brown. 

2 A somewhat  similar  root  for  “ snake  ” is  found  in  the  western  Balolo  dialects. 

3 Regarding  the  Wanda  people  (now  perhaps  exterminated  by  the  Zappo-Zap 
slave  raids),  Henrique  de  Carvalho  (. Etlmographia  e Historia)  states  that  they  strain 
the  skin  of  the  lower  abdomen  downwards  till  in  course  of  time  it  hangs  like  a flap 
over  the  pudenda.  Vide  Grenfell’s  note,  p.  138. 

4 Grenfell’s  Barumbe  or  Bambenga,  “a  very  light-coloured  bush  people.”  Vide 
p.  132. 


257-  THREE  TYPES  OF  BOPOTO  MEN 
These  belong  more  or  less  to  the  “ Ngombe”  groups  of  North  Congoland. 


LIBRARY 
OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


5” 


negroes.  As  to  the  likelihood  of  these  crosses  taking  place,  I 
can  only  say  that  on  the  Uganda-Congo  border-line  Pygmy 
wives1  were  much  sought  after  by  the  six-feet-high  Sudanese 
soldiers,  and  these  unions  were  nearly  always  fertile  in  offspring. 

The  average  negro  of  the  Congo  basin  is  composed,  in 
varying  degrees,  of  three  or  four  racial  elements  (besides  the 
exceptional  results  of  direct  Caucasian  intermixture)  : — 

(i)  Negrito — i.e.  Pygmy  (all  over  the  Congo  basin  except 
the  south)  and  (2)  Bushman  (perhaps  in  southern  Lundaland, 
Katanga,  Mweru,  and  Bangweulu). 

(3)  Forest  negro. 

(4)  Nilotic  negro. 

The  Forest  negro  has  been  defined  by  the  present  writer  in 
his  work  on  the  Uganda  Protectorate.  The  type  can  be  traced 
in  a more  or  less  marked  form  all  over  negro  Africa.  It  is 
evidently  the  next  stage  in  evolution  above  the  Pygmy,  but  the 
development  of  the  body  is  only  partial.  The  Forest  negro  may 
have  a splendid  torso,  but  he  has  very  long  arms  and  (proportion- 
ately) short  legs.  The  skull  is  dolichocephalous  and  the  face 
is  prognathous,  sometimes  markedly  so.  The  brow  ridges  in 
some  examples  are  prominent.  The  head  and  body  hair, 
as  in  the  Pygmy,  are  abundant.  There  is  no  tendency  to 
steatopygy,  though  there  may  be  an  excessive  breadth  de- 
veloped transversely  across  the  pelvis  and  thighs,  with  no 
special  prominence  of  the  buttocks.  In  short,  in  almost  every 
physical  feature  the  Forest  negro  is  the  opposite  pole  to  the 
Bushman  in  the  sphere  of  the  negro  species.  [See  illustration 
No.  194  on  p.  353.] 

The  Nilotic  type  of  negro  in  its  extreme  development,  in 
the  upper  Nile  basin  and  in  East  Africa,  is  less  prognathous 
than  the  Forest  man  or  the  Pygmy,  but  is  long-headed  and 
rather  dark  in  skin  colour.  The  body  hair  is  not  much  de- 
veloped ; the  head  hair  may,  in  a natural  state,  grow  longer 
than  it  does  in  the  more  typical  negro,  but  there  is  much  less 
beard  and  moustache.  The  predominant  feature,  however, 
which  marks  off  all  negroes  of  the  Nilotic  group  is  the  exces- 
sive length  of  the  legs.  These — according  to  the  European 
standard  of  beauty — are  disproportionately  long  in  contrast  to 
the  legs  of  the  Forest  negro,  which  are  disproportionately  short. 

The  Nilotic  type  is  evidently  a very  early  hybrid  between 
the  Caucasian  invaders — the  Mediterranean  men  of  the  Nile 
valley  and  of  Arabia — with  the  pre-existing  negro  stock  of 

1 Most  of  these  women  measured  at  my  direction  were  under  4 feet  in  height, 
while  their  Madi,  Bari,  Acholi  husbands  were  5 feet  1 1 inches  to  6 feet  2 inches. 


512  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

north-east  Africa:  Bushman,  Hottentot,  Forest  man,  or 
Pygmy.  The  Nilotes  became  herdsmen,  receiving  from  Egypt 
their  cattle,  sheep,  and  goats.  They  probably  also  learnt  from 
Egypt  or  the  Nigerian  Sudan  the  use  of  metals  and  other 
elements  of  Neolithic  culture,  and  thus  armed  they  penetrated 
right  across  Africa  to  the  Atlantic  and  down  the  eastern  sea- 

o 

board  to  the  Zambezi. 

The  mixture — in  all  degrees — between  the  Nilote  and  the 
Forest  negro  (with  the  absorption  of  Pygmy  and  Hottentot- 
Bushman  and  occasional  injections  of  the  Caucasian)  accounts 
for  all  the  known  negro  types  of  modern  Africa,  except,  of 
course,  the  undiluted  Pygmy  or  Bushman. 

The  equal  blend  of  the  Forest  negro  and  the  Nilotic  giant1 
gives  us  some  of  the  handsomest  peoples  of  Congoland — the 
Ababua  Bantu  of  the  Wele- Bomokandi  ; the  non -Bantu 
Banza,  Sango,  Banziri,  Nsakara,  and  Mongwandi  of  the 
western  Mubangi  basin  ; and  the  Bantu-speaking  Bangala, 
Babangi,  and  Bapoto  of  the  northern  Congo. 

The  Ababzia 2 Bantu  are  lauded  by  all  travellers  who  have 
seen  them  for  their  physical  beauty,  the  good  looks  even  ex- 
tending in  the  men  to  the  facial  outline,  though  the  women  are 
more  typically  negro,  Amongst  the  Sango  tribes  a type  of 
face  appears  here  and  there  that  is  singularly  Ethiopic,  with 
a delicately  shaped  nose,  well-formed  chin,  and  pointed  beard  ; 
but  with  a particularly  long  head,  that  develops  quite  a con- 
siderable bulge  at  the  back.  The  present  writer  has  seen  this 
same  racial  type  as  far  west  as  the  upper  Cross  River,  and  it  is 
met  with  occasionally  amongst  the  P'anwe  of  F'rench  Congo  and 
the  Baya  of  the  German  Cameroons,  while  it  may  reappear  in 
the  regions  behind  the  Guinea  coast.  It  is  due  in  some 
instances,  no  doubt,  to  a trickle  of  Caucasian  blood,  our  species 
or  sub-species  having  permeated  Negro  Africa  from  a most 
remote  period.  The  Mongwandi  of  the  upper  Mongala  are 
described  as  like  bronze  statues.  They  have  thin  lips,  aquiline 
noses,  and  are  compared  in  physical  appearance  to  the  better 
type  of  Azande.  But  athwart  all  this  region  of  the  northern 
Congo,  in  the  basin  of  the  Aruwimi,  of  the  Wele- Mubangi,  of 
the  Likati,  Rubi,  Mongala,  and  Sanga,  there  are  layers  and 

1 The  Nilotic  negroes  produce  the  tallest  races  in  the  world,  tribes  like  the 
Turkana,  in  which  nearly  every  man  is  over  six  feet  and  giants  of  seven  feet  are  not 
uncommon. 

2 This  word  should  really  be  spelt  Babua  without  the  Nyamnyam  prefix  A- ; the 
language  type  of  the  Babua  or  Babati  is  also  shared  by  Pygmies  and  Forest  negroes 
of  low  type,  an  example  of  how  in  the  Congo  basin  language  affinities  and  physical 
features  are  quite  at  variance. 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


5*3 


groups  of  Forest  negroes  of  powerful  torso,  short  legs,  long 
arms,  short  necks,  and  great  prognathism.  These  shade  off 
again  into  the  bigger  type  of  Pygmy. 

In  physical  appearance  the  tribes  of  the  lower  Aruwimi, 
lower  Lomami,  Lindi,  and  Chopo  rivers — the  Basoko,  Babali , 
Turumbu,Lokele , Topoke^Bamboli^wdiBakumu — are  a less  hand- 
some physical  type  than  the  Bayanzi-Bangala,  Ngombe,  and 
Bamanga  (the  latter 
not  speaking  a 
Bantu  language).1 
The  body  is  some- 
times well  formed, 
though  they  tend 
more  towards  the 
Forest  negro  type 
with  short  legs. 

The  face  is  often 
ugly  and  progna- 
thous. The  far- 
ther one  travels 
away  from  the 
banks  of  the  main 
Congo  or  the 
middle  course  of 
the  Aruwimi,  the 
more  these  people 
tend  to  be  short- 
legged,  long- 
armed,  and  of  ugly 
appearance.  The 
handsome  type  of 
Bantu  scarcely  re- 
appears until  the  2^g  BANALYa  people,  on  the  middle  aruwimi  river 
traveller  reaches  to 

the  eastern  limits  of  the  Congo  basin,  and  finds  himself  in  touch 
with  the  hill  or  plateau  tribes  speaking  very  pure  Bantu  lan- 
guages, and  influenced  by  an  intermixture  with  the  Ethiopian 
aristocracy  abJIit  to  be  described.  Even  the  Bakonjo,  and  still 
more  the  Bctamba  of  Ruwenzori  and  the  semi- Bantu  negroes  of 
the  eastern  Ituri  forests,  are  of  the  Forest  negro  type,  though 


1 It  is  stated  that  the  bows  of  the  Bamanga  resemble  those  of  the  Azande,  and  of 
Sudanese  tribes  to  the  north  of  the  Congo  basin.  Stuhlmann  was  struck  with  the 
resemblance  in  some  characteristics  between  the  Bamanga  and  the  Manbtttu.  Vice- 
Consul  Michell  describes  the  Bamanga  of  the  Congo  banks  as  a very  handsome 
people.  They  are,  however,  noted  for  their  extreme  licentiousness. 


II. — c 


5i4  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


the  Bakonjo  occasionally  offer  comely  examples.  The  Balega 
people  of  eastern  Congoland,  between  the  Tanganyika  basin 
and  the  Lualaba-Congo,  and  the  Baguha  of  north-west  Tangan- 
yika, are  interesting  in  that  they  speak  a less  corrupted  type  of 
Bantu  language,  more  connected  with  the  eastern  Bantu  groups 
than  with  the  western  Bantu  of  the  Congo  basin.  But  they  are 

of  the  Forest  negro 
category  in  physi- 
cal appearance. 


The  Nilotic 
type  of  negro  with- 
in  the  whole 
southern  basin  of 
the  Nile  must  have 
been  early  con- 
verted to  Bantu 
influence  [though 
the  mother  form  of 
the  Bantu  lan- 


guages was  pro- 
bably a Forest 
negro  speech]. 
But  though  the 
fusion  of  pygmy 
and  giant,  of  the 
short-legged  wood- 
land people  and  the 
long-legged  black- 
men  of  the  open 
country,  may  have 
sufficed  for  the 

259.  A TURUMBU  CHIEF  AND  HIS  ATTENDANT:  YALEMBA  Creation  of  the 

various  Bantu  dia- 
lects, the  culture,  the  conquering  instinct,  the  dominant  position 
of  the  Bantu  negroes 1 to-day  are  probably  due  to  the  immigra- 
tion into  East-Central  Africa  of  a superior  type  of  humanity  : 
that  aristocratic  negroid,  known  under  many  names,  Fula, 
Songhai,  Nubian,  Ethiopian,  Nyamnyam,  Manbettu,  Hima, 
Gala,  Masai — the  product  of  the  oft-repeated  hybrids  between 
the  Mediterranean  white  man  and  the  negroids  or  negroes  of 


1 In  all  their  varying  physical  types  ranging  from  Pygmy  or  semi-Bushman  to 
a type  almost  Hamitic  and  non-negro — the  only  bond  of  unity  being  the  tie  of 
language  affinity. 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


5i5 


northern  tropical  Africa.  It  was  probably  the  Hima  variety 
of  this  semi-Caucasian  type  that  first  invaded  the  Congo  basin 
on  the  north-east. 

The  Hima 1 or  Huma  (Tusi  or  Tutsi,  Ruhinda)  cattle- 
keeping aristocracy  of  Unyoro,  Uganda,  Toro,  Mpororo,  Ankore, 
Karagwe,  Ruanda,  Burundi,  and  the  southern  shores  and  islands 
of  the  Victoria  Nyanza  seems  to  have  found  its  way  into  eastern 
Congoland  along  the  lofty  plateaux  and  mountains  bordering 
on  the  west  the  great  Tanganyika- Albertine  Rift  valley.  This 
caste  of  straight-featured,  handsome  negroids  has  obviously 
influenced  the  looks  of  the  Manyema,  the  Rua  and  Luba 
peoples,  the  Balolo,  and  above  all,  the  Bakuba  ; and  even  crops 
up  here  and  there  among  the  Forest  negroes  of  the  north- 
eastern Congo.  It  is  itself  essentially  Gala  and  Somali  in  its 
affinities,  and  to  a lesser  degree  Egyptian  and  Ethiopian.2 

In  the  Congo  basin  the  Hima  type  is  probably  nowhere 
more  marked  than  in  the  Bakuba , the  ruling  people  of  central 
Congoland,  who,  as  an  aristocratic  caste,  possess  a consider- 
able territory  which  stretches  between  the  Kasai,  Sankuru, 
and  the  Lulua,  and  perhaps  overlaps  the  Sankuru  to  the  north- 
east. 

They  form  a very  powerful  and  industrious  people,  chiefly 
occupied  in  the  ivory  trade.  Big  and  strong,  they  live  chiefly 
on  game  and  fish.  From  religious  motives,  they  abstain  from 
eating  the  goat  and  sheep,  and  do  not  take  their  slaves  as 
wives.  They  smelt  and  work  iron,  weave  cloths  to  perfection, 
embroider  them  and  dye  them.  They  also  make  large  mats  on 
a frame  and  carve  wood  with  much  artistic  taste.  They  are 

1 To  avoid  the  wearisome  repetition  of  half  a dozen  local  appellations  it  is  best 
to  restrict  oneself  to  the  one  name  of  Hima  to  designate  the  type  of  Gala-like  negroids 
of  Central  Africa. 

2 The  Gala  and  Somali  and  the  allied  peoples  between  the  Nile  and  the  Red 
Sea  speak  languages  that  are  classified  as  “ Hamitic.”  This  group  is  obviously, 
though  distantly,  related  to  the  Ancient  Egyptian  and  to  the  Semitic  families,  and 
still  more  distantly,  yet  with  equal  certainty,  to  the  Libyan  or  Berber  tongues,  which 
are  spoken  even  at  the  present  day  between  the  western  basin  of  the  lower  Nile  and 
the  Atlantic  coast  (earlier  still,  as  far  west  as  the  Canary  Islands).  Dialects  of 
Libyan  speech  extend  southwards  to  the  Senegal  River  and  across  the  upper  Niger. 
Libyan  languages  acting  on  a basis  of  West  African  negro  speech  brought  into 
existence  the  curious  hybrid  Hausa  tongue,  which  is  sex-denoting,  and  which  in 
other  grammatical  features  is  almost  a member  of  the  Libyan-Semitic-Hamitic  group, 
a group  which  may  once  have  extended  its  range  across  Spain  and  France  to  Britain 
and  Ireland,  leaving  its  traces  even  at  the  present  day  in  the  fundamental  structure 
of  Irish,  Welsh,  and  Basque,  just  as  it  has  done  in  Hausa  and  in  some  of  the  other 
semi-negro  languages  of  North-Central  Africa.  Physically  speaking,  the  Hamitic  or 
Ethiopian  race  of  man  is  distinguished  from  the  Semite  and  the  Libyan  by  a greater 
degree  of  intermixture  with  an  early  negroid  type,  by  its  darker  skin  colour,  less 
prominent  and  never  aquiline  nose,  and  perhaps  lesser  tendency  to  growth  of  body 
hair.  It  is  (I  should  think)  a very  ancient  hybrid  compared  to  most  African  races  of 
the  present  day. 


5 1 6 GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


1 “ The  Bakuba  properly  so  called  are  divided  into  two  groups  : the  tribe  on  the 
banks  of  the  Sankuru,  which  is  independent,  and  another  under  the  sway  of  Lukengu. 
At  the  death  of  Lukengu’s  predecessor,  his  aunt,  the  sister  of  the  dead  chief,  at  the 
head  of  certain  malcontents,  refused  to  recognize  the  chief  (Lukengu)  elected  by  the 
majority  and  formed  an  independent  group.  Itoson,  this  woman’s  son,  is  destined  to 
succeed  Lukengu.”  (Torday.) 


much  given  to  trade,  but  are  entirely  different  from  the  Baluba 
in  language  and  customs. 

Formerly  every  stranger  who  entered  the  territory  of  the 
Bakuba  was  condemned  to  death.  Ludwig  Wolf,  the  German 
explorer,  was  the  first  to  enter  their  country,  in  1885. 

The  tradition  among  the  Bakuba  is  that  they  came  from 
the  north-east  and  settled  down  as  conquerors  on  the  banks  of 

the  Sankuru ; that 
they  were  one  peo- 
ple once  with  the 
Basonge  (now  dwel- 
ling to  the  east  of 
them);  and  that 
when  they  crossed 
the  Sankuru  and 
advanced  towards 
the  Lulua  and 
Kasai  they  ran  up 
against  the  Baluba 
coming  from  the 
south  - east.  They 
are  described  now 
as  the  most  power- 
ful, conservative, 
least  changed,  and 
most  tenacious  of 
their  own  supersti- 
tions and  customs  of 
all  the  surrounding 
tribes.  They  are 
also  probably  the 

intelligent,  except 
(it  may  be)  the  “ Zappo-Zaps  ” (Basonge)  dwelling  to  east  of 
them,  an  allied  people  also  tempered  with  the  Ethiopian  element. 

The  leading  chief  among  the  Bakuba  is  Lukengu,  who 
resides  ordinarily  at  Bashibushong  some  distance  to  the  north 
of  the  Lulua  River.  Lukengu  seems  to  be  his  hereditary  title 
rather  than  his  name.1 


most  capable  and 


260.  AN  EXAMPLE  OF  THE  “HIMA”  TYPE  FROM 
YALEMBA,  N.E.  CONGO 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


50 


Here  is  a pen  portrait  by  Mr.  S.  P.  Verner1  of  a typical 
Kuba  chief  (the  nephew  and  successor  of  the  celebrated 
Maimunene  who  received  Pogge,  Wissmann,  and  Wolf)  : — 

“Ndombe,  chief  of  the  Bikembe,  was  nearly  6 feet  6 inches  in 
height,  of  a bright  copper  colour,  broad,  square  shoulders,  herculean 
limbs,  and  handsome  features  ...  as  straight  as  an  arrow,  splendidly 
proportioned.  He  had  a broad,  high  forehead,  straight  and  somewhat 
aquiline  nose,  a pair  of  magnificent  brown  eyes — restless,  searching, 
seeming  to  take  in  the  whole  horizon  at  a glance.  His  cheekbones 
were  high,  his  mouth  clear-cut  and  rather  mobile,  the  chin  firm  and 
broad,  the  whole  face  beaming  with  intelligence,  bespeaking  a character 
at  once  resolute  and  benign.”2 

Here  is  a portrait  of  his  son  Mianye  (“  Bow-string”)  : — 

“ Straight  as  an  arrow,  with  bodily  lines  so  symmetrical,  the  poise 
so  erect  and  free,  the  person  so  clean  and  lacking  in  any  savage  or 
uncouth  ornaments,  his  eyes  full  and  lustrous,  delicately  chiselled 
features — this  boy  was  an  aristocrat  to  compare  with  the  scions  of  the 
royal  houses  of  Europe.” 

Grenfell  describes  the  Bakuba  as  “ handsome,  proud,  in- 
clined to  be  cruel,  and  very  superstitious.”  Lukengu,  the  king 
of  Bashibushong,  encouraged  burial  murders  and  witchcraft 
persecutions.  But  Ndombe  (who  I trust  still  lives  and  rules 
his  people  wisely)  seems  to  have  been  a model  of  good  sense, 
according  to  Verner,  Martin,  and  Morrison.3 

Here  is  an  anecdote  by  Verner  as  to  Ndombe’s  contempt 
for  superstition  : — 

“ A man  named  Tambu  (‘  Lion  ’)  had  a pretty  wife  whom  he  had 
recently  married.  One  day  he  came  running  down,  saying  that  one 
of  Ndombe’s  men  had  cast  the  evil  eye  on  his  wife  whilst  she  was 
cooking,  and  that  it  meant  death  unless  expiated.  He  wanted  to  go 
and  kill  the  offender,  and  being  a terrible  man,  soon  a tremendous 
uproar  resulted.  Ndombe  came  and  heard  the  casus  belli , went  to 
Tambu  and  his  wife,  and  in  a most  fatherly  manner  laughed  their  fears 
to  scorn.  ‘ Why,’  said  he,  ‘ such  talk  is  sheer  nonsense.  If  you  like  I 
will  call  all  my  thirty  wives  and  let  this  man  look  at  them  all  day  long 
if  he  can  do  any  harm.  If  you  have  nothing  more  to  fear  from  my 
people  than  their  eyes  you  can  go  and  sleep  in  peace.’  ” 

The  Bakuba  strain  has  given  a ruling  class  to  the  Balolo 
in  the  central  basin  of  the  Congo.  Ba-lolo  is  said  to  mean 

1 Pioneering  in  Central  Africa. 

2 A less  pleasant-tempered  Bakuba  chief,  Belinge,  was  described  as  “copper- 
coloured,  large  of  stature.” 

3 American  Presbyterian  missionaries. 


5 1 8 GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


“men  of  iron,”  “ iron-workers,”1 2  and  indeed  nearly  all  these 
aristocracies  founded  by  Hima  adventurers  have  been  asso- 
ciated in  legend  with  the  introduction  of  metal-working  into 
a land  still  in  the  Stone  Age,  or  in  the  even  earlier  culture  that 
uses  bone,  horn,  thorn,  thong,  and  wood.  But  the  more 
aboriginal  “Balolo”  are  better  termed  Mongo  or  Bankutu?  They 

are  of  poor  physical 
development  and 
primitive  in  mode 
of  life.  LordMount- 
morres  describes 
the  Mongo  people 
between  the  Lo- 
mami  and  Lopori 
as  “small  of  stature 
and  meagre  of 
build,  a backward 
forest  race.” 


“ Their  clothing  is 
of  the  scantiest,  and, 
curiously  enough, 
when  the  men  of  this 
region  and  along  the 
upper  Lopori  start  to 
paddle  a canoe  or  to 
carry  any  loads  they 
strip  themselves  stark 
naked.  Like  some 
other  of  the  popula- 
tions in  the  northern 
basin  of  the  Congo, 
and  at  intervals  as  far 
west  as  the  upper 
Cross  River  and  the 
Niger  Delta, they  have 
peculiar  ceremonies 
connected  with  hand- 
shaking, elaborate  grips,  and  the  snapping  of  the  fingers  of  the  person 
they  are  greeting.” 


261.  AN  MPO  WOMAN  FROM  THE  BUSIRA  RIVER 
(Her  skin  has  been  whitened  for  decoration.) 


According  to  Grenfell,  the  pile-dwellers  of  mixed  Mongo 
and  Lokele  stock,  who  live  chiefly  on  roots  and  fish,  and  inhabit 


1 On  the  other  hand,  it  should  be  noted  that  Lolo  or  Ki-lolo  is  the  name  of  one  of 
the  aristocratic  clans  among  the  Luba-Lunda  peoples  who  are  obviously  impregnated 
with  Bakuba  civilization. 

2 They  are  also  styled  Ndolo  in  the  west,  Mpd  in  the  centre  of  their  range, 
and  Bankundu  in  the  north. 


ANTHROPOLOGY  519 


the  swampy  Lianza  country  between  the  Lualaba-Congo  and 
the  Lomami,  are  a weakly,  lean,  insignificant-looking  people. 


Lord  Mountmorres  thus  describes  the  higher  type  of 
Balolo  : — 


“The  Mantomba  tribes  on  the  north-east  shores  of  Lake  Ntomba 
are  probably  related  to  the  Mongo  (Balolo).  They  are  a fine  virile  race 
of  very  dark  skin,  almost  black  ...  of  a high  order  of  intelligence 
. . . one  large  group 
of  villages  in  particu- 
lar, that  of  Mwangi, 
was  a model  of  native 
African  architecture 
and  discipline.  Huts 
were  ornamented  ex- 
ternally with  elabo- 
rate reeding1  execu- 
ted with  very  primi- 
tive local  knives.  At 
Pikoro  and  Ikoko  on 
Lake  Ntomba  the  na- 
tive population  is 
diminishing,  and  has 
diminished  enor- 
mously in  recent 
years.  Whole  villages 
are  deserted  and 
abandoned,  planta- 
tions absorbed  by 
the  quick  - growing 
bush  ...  a general 
scene  of  ruin.  The 
natives  are  very  shy 
and  sullen  about 
meeting  a white  man : 
in  the  past  they  were  262.  M0NG0  boatmen  from  upp  r congo 

notable  traders,  es- 
pecially in  the  very  beautiful  black  pottery,  which  they  made  \\  ith  extra- 
ordinary skill  from  the  mud  at  the  bottom  of  the  creeks  round  the  lake. 
In  former  times  this  black  pottery  was  sought  for  even  by  tho  Sango 
on  the  upper  Mubangi,  who  used  to  exchange  slaves  and  live  stock  for 
these  shiny  black  pots.  The  decay  of  the  people  is  partly  due  to  a 
devastating  war  carried  on  for  a long  time  by  a chief  named  Lukola 
Ngonya,  who  rebelled  against  the  Congo  State.” 


A race  influenced  perhaps  by  the  better  class  of  “ Balolo  ” 
is  the  Bavumbo , who  dwell  on  the  banks  of  the  upper  Lukenye. 


1 This  reed-work  recalls  a similar  art  in  Uganda.  (H.  H.  J.) 


5^0  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Their  dress  is  composed  of  a piece  of  material  made  of  beaten 
fibres  of  palm  tree,  manufactured  with  taste  and  skill,  held 
round  the  body  by  a thong  of  buffalo  hide.  Like  the  natives 
of  the  Kasai  basin,  they  are  clever  at  hunting,  and  do  not  give 
themselves  up  to  fishing. 

None  of  their  villages  are  to  be  found  on  the  banks  of  the 
river  ; they  are  all  several  miles  in  the  interior.  The  Bavumbo 
show  a good  deal  of  fastidiousness  in  the  arrangement  of  their 

o o ## 

houses.  These  are  constructed  of  raphia-palm  midribs,  and  are 
covered  with  a roof  of  palm  fronds.  “They  possess  large  planta- 
tions, and,  strange  to  say,  cultivate  cotton  ( Gossypium  acumina- 
tum'), which  they  spin  and  of  which  they  make  pretty  head-dresses 
in  crochet.  These  bonnets  would  call  forth  the  admiration  as 
well  as  labour  of  skilled  workers.  They  put  much  art  in  the 
workmanship  of  all  their  productions ; their  stuffs  are  very 
fine  and  of  good  designs  in  different  colours,  resembling  pile 
velvet.  Their  vases  in  clay  and  wood,  their  knife-handles,  the 
shafts  of  their  arrows  and  spears,  their  musical  instruments, 
pipes,  etc.,  are  ornamented  with  elegant  carvings  recalling 
Egyptian  designs,  which  denote,  in  the  case  of  this  “savage” 
people  who  have  never  been  in  contact  with  white  men,  a rare 
spirit  of  inventiveness  and  an  intelligence  which  only  requires 
development.”  (Torday.) 

The  Basongo 1 form  a very  powerful  and  numerous  tribe, 
inhabiting  the  region  comprised  between  the  right  bank  of  the 
Kasai,  the  Sankuru,  and  the  Lubefu.  They  are  intelligent 
people,  owning  large  plantations  and  building  themselves 
curious-shaped  huts. 

Their  nation  contains  magnificent  brawny  men,  who  are 
skilful  workers  in  iron,  copper,  clay,  and  wood.  In  remarkable 
contrast  with  the  majority  of  other  African  races,  the  men  assign 
to  themselves  the  work  of  the  fields,  and  leave  to  the  care  of 
their  wives  the  carrying  on  of  industries  and  the  direction  of 
the  household.  Unhappily  their  religious  rites  are  sometimes 
accompanied  by  cannibalism.  Wissmann  praises  their  haughty 
beauty,  natural  intelligence,  and  native  kindness.  Their  villages 
are  numerous  and  the  population  is  of  extraordinary  density. 
That  great  traveller  took  sometimes  five  hours  to  cross  one  of 
their  market  towns,  and  Wolf  estimates  at  fifteen  thousand  the 
number  of  inhabitants  in  the  largest  villages. 

The  Batetela , and  their  next  of  kin  the  Basonge  (“Zappo- 
Zaps  ”)  on  the  south,  dwell  to  the  east  of  the  Basongo,  and  are 


Or  Basongo-meno.  The  name  means  “ they  sharpen  teeth.: 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


521 

much  permeated  with  Bakuba  blood.  Verner  writes  of 
them  : — 


“ Owing  to  the  fertility  of  their  country  the  Batetela  are  abun- 
dantly supplied  with  food,  and  have  become  men  of  great  stature,  while 
their  numbers  have  increased  and  made  the  district  fairly  black  with 
people.  They  are  brave,  hospitable,  and  kind-hearted,  and  some  of 
them  are  good-looking. 

Not  all  are  so  very 
black,  though  this  is 
their  prevailing’colour. 

Some  are  of  light  yel- 
low.” 


The  Many  etna , 
who  have  been  a 
good  deal  dimin- 
ished of  late  by 
sleeping  sickness 
and  w~ars,  are  a peo- 
ple of  somewhat  di- 
verse physical  ele- 
ments. They  are 
not  usually  very  tall, 
but  their  supple 
bodies  are  well 
formed  and  well  pro- 
portioned. The  face 
often  betrays  early 
Ethiopian  intermix- 
ture. Related  in 
language  to  the 
Manyema,  and  ap- 
parently in  physical 
type,  are  the  Wango- 
belio  or  Waujabilio, 
a race  of  canoe  men 
who  inhabit  the  263.  bagenya  canoe  paddlers,  lualaba-congo 
banks  of  the  Lua- 

laba- Congo  south  of  Hinde  Rapids  and  about  the  Cameron 
Falls.  The  Bagenya1  are  of  all  the  Congo  peoples  the 
most  water-loving.  They  inhabit  the  banks  of  the  Lualaba- 
Congo  from  Stanley  Falls  to  the  Hinde  Rapids  south  of 
Nyangwe.  Yet,  according  to  Hinde,  though  they  spend  the 


1 The  Bagenya  are  said  to  have  driven  the  Bakumu  away  from  the  Stanley  Falls. 
Also  known  as  Baenya,  Waginya,  Wenya. 


522  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


greater  part  of  their  lives  on  the  water  in  canoes,  they  are 
usually  bad  swimmers.  The  torso  and  arms  are  splendidly 
developed,  but  the  legs  are  short.  They  detest  having  to  walk, 

and  will  not  will- 
ingly go  anywhere 
except  by  canoe, 
never  travelling  by 
land  if  they  can 
help  it.  Their  vil- 
lages consist  of 
grass  huts  about 
six  feet  high  with 
nearly  fiat  roofs. 
They  are  almost 
without  religious 
beliefs  or  practices, 
so  far  as  can  be 
ascertained.  They 
get  their  living 

o o 

chiefly  by  fishing 
and  making  bad 
pottery  of  river 
mud.  They  ex- 
change their  fish 
and  pottery  with 
the  forest  people  of 
the  interior  for  pro- 
duce and  also  for 
canoes,  these  last 
being  made  by  the 
forest  folk  and  not 
by  the  Bagenya. 
They  go  ashore  to 
sleep  ; otherwise 
their  lives  are 
mainly  passed  in 
their  canoes,  in 
which  even  their 
dances  are  performed.  In  origin  and  language  they  are  about 
equally  related  to  the  Manyema  and  to  the  forest  Bantu  of  the 
Equatorial  Congo. 

South  of  the  Manyema,  one  enters  apparently  a region  of 
Bantu-speaking  people  much  influenced  by  relatively  recent 
invasions  across  Tanganyika  from  the  east.  Their  language 


264.  THE  KONGO  (ON  LEFT)  AND  HOLO  TYPES  CONTRASTED 
The  Bakongo  and  Eshi- Kongo  occupy  much  of  the  country  west  of  the 
lower  and  middle  Kwango  River.  The  Baholo  inhabit  the  middle 
Kwango  Valley. 


ANTHROPOLOGY  523 


belongs  to  a more  archaic  Bantu  type,  recalling  some  features 
found  in  the  Uganda  group  of  tongues,  and  also  in  the  languages 
of  South  and  East  Africa.  The  mass  of  the  population  is  of 
course  essentially  negro,  but  many  of  the  ruling  chiefs  have  an 
Ethiopian  type  of  countenance.  As  already  mentioned,  this 
E thio  pian  cast  of 
feature  is  very  promi- 
nent in  the  mysterious 
Bakuba,  but  it  is  also 
characteristic  of  the 
Baluba  chiefs  and 
freemen.  Indeed  the 
original  Bakuba , Ba- 
/uba,1  Ba-lua , Ba-lolo , 
must  have  been  one 
clan  of  Hima  inva- 
ders, the  members  of 
which  (bold  hunters, 
warriors,  smiths,  and 
enjoying  from  their 
wits  and  physical 
beauty  the  present 
prestige  of  the 
“white  man”)  took 
up  and  moulded 
different  groups  of 
vassals  among-  the 
r orest  negroes, 

o 7 

whose  dialects  they 
modified  and 
adopted. 

The  western  Ba- 
luba, who  are  some- 
times called  by  the  , 

, J 265.  A BATEKE  MAN,  WOMAN,  AND  CHILD  FROM 

alternative  name  of  Stanley  pool 

Bashilange , are  de- 
scribed by  some  explorers  as  an  ugly,  weakly  folk,  and  likely  to 
have  arisen  by  a mixture  between  the  real  Baluba  conquerors 
of  Hima  stock  and  the  Pygmy  or  semi-Pygmies  whom  they 
found  in  occupation  of  the  lands  between  the  Sankuru  and  the 
Kasai. 

Lubaland  is  also  shared  by  two  servile  races,  the  Bateke 


1 Bakuba  in  the  eastern  Luba  dialects  means  “ the  people  of  thunder  ” ; Ba-luba 
means  “ the  wanderers.” 


fundamentally  of  the  Forest  negro  stamp.  The  freemen, 
however,  the  conquering  aristocracies,  the  chiefs,  the  pre- 
datory clans  exhibit  over  and  over  again  that  Ethiopian  type 
of  countenance,  which  in  some  individuals  is  almost  Egyptian, 
and  would  be  more  markedly  so  but  for  the  persistent  wool  of 
the  negro. 

This  last  feature  is  indeed  of  remarkable  persistency  in  these 
African  hybrids.  The  handsome  Hima  aristocracy  of  Ankole, 
for  example,  though  it  may  be  almost  identical  in  physiognomy, 
here  with  a Gala,  and  there  with  an  Ancient  Egyptian,  has  head 
hair  of  an  absolutely  negro  type. 

The  Ba-holo  of  the  River  Kwango  show  a refined  type  of 


524  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

and  the  Bakete , of  Forest  negro  type  [and  by  numerous  tribes 
of  dwarfs — Batwa,  Bakwa,  Yeke].  The  “Bateke”  noted  by 
Wolf,  Grenfell,  and  Wissmann  in  the  angle  of  country  between 
the  lower  Sankuru  and  the  Kasai  may  be  related  to  the  Bateke 
of  Stanley  Pool,  or  this  widespread  name  may  only  indicate 
another  dwarf  race.  The  “ masses”  rather  than  the  “classes” 
throughout  all  southern  Congoland  — amongst  the  Baluba, 
Balua,  Alunda,  Basanga,  Basambo — are  of  an  average  negro 
type,  which  as  one  proceeds  southwards  gives  a hint  here  and 
there  of  ancient  Bushman  or  Hottentot  intermixture,  but  is 


266.  BAYAKA  PEOPLE  FROM  THE  BANKS  OF  THE  KWANGO,  NEAR  FRANZ  JOSEF  FALLS 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


525 

face  and  feature,  and  a somewhat  light-coloured  skin,  which  may 
be  due  merely  to  local  variation.1 

In  Grenfell’s  picture  (p.  522)  the  physical  contrast  between 
the  Kongo  type  west  of  the  Kwango  and  the  Holo  dwelling 
mainly  to  the  east  is  aptly  illustrated.  The  coast  peoples  of 
south-west  Africa,  from  the  Berg-Damara  and  the  Ovambo  on 
the  south,  through  Angola  and  the  Kongo  province,  across  the 
Congo  estuary  northwards  to  the  Gaboon  and  almost  up  to  the 


267.  SKULL  OF  BAMBALA  NEGRO  (MALE)  S.W.  CONGOLAND 
(Torday  Collection.) 

Cameroons,  are  ordinarily  an  ugly,  coarse-built,  hairy,  black- 
skinned type  of  negro,  mainly  of  Forest  stock,  with  some 
ancient  Pygmy  intermixture.  Here  and  there  a tribe  attains  to 
a tall  stature,  but  the  physical  proportions,  the  facial  aspect, 
are  nearly  always  unpleasing.  This  is  (or  was)  so  much  the 

1 In  his  book  on  the  Kasai  regions  recently  published,  Dr.  Frobenius  gives 
portraits  of  Kioko  and  Luba  women  that  are  almost  Egyptian  in  profile  and  com- 
plexion. Livingstone  fifty  years  ago  remarked  the  same  Ethiopian  elements  in  the 
races  of  the  Zambezi-Congo  water-parting.  The  Ethiopian  crops  up  again  among  the 

Herero,  in  the  Batonga  of  central  Zambezia,  and  in  the  South  African  Kafir-Zulu,  just 
as  the  low  Forest  negro  and  Hottentot  elements  are  also  apparent. 


526  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

case  with  the  Lower  Congo  peoples  that  one  of  the  many  sur- 
prises which  met  the  early  explorer  on  attaining  Stanley  Pool 


268.  FRONT  VIEW  OF  THE  SKULL  OF  MALE  BAMBALA. 

SAME  SPECIMEN  AS  NO.  267 

was  to  behold  the  pleasant  faces  and  well-shaped  bodies  of 
the  Bayanzi  or  Bangala  traders. 

The  Bateke  of  Stanley  Pool,  the  western  Upper  Congo,  and 
the  Ogowe  watershed  are  very  mixed  in  physical  type.  Some 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


527 


of  the  chiefs  are  fine-looking  men,  with  faces  recalling  the 
good-looking  Bayanzi.  Many  of  the  common  people,  however, 
are  coarse  in  type,  with  ugly,  unintelligent  faces.  So  are  the 
Bombuno , or  Bamfunu , near  allies  of  the  Bateke,  who  inhabit 
parts  of  the  country  between  Stanley  Pool  and  the  lower 
Kwango.  The  Babuma  or  Bctboma,  and  Bakutu  of  the  Kwa 
or  lower  Kwango  are  also  coarse  in  build  ; the  lower  part  of 
the  nose  is  large,  with  big,  fleshy  nostrils.  They,  like  the 
Bayaka  of  the  lower  Kwango,  are  very  dark  in  skin  colour. 
The  Ba-huctna,  dwelling  between  the  Kwilu  and  the  Kancha, 
are  described  by  Torday  as  being  reddish-brown  to  choco- 
late colour  and 
rather  short  in 
stature.  Their  hair 
is  finer  in  texture 
than  that  of  the 
ordinary  negro 
type,  is  less  tightly 
curled,  and  may 
vary  from  glossy 
black  to  dark 
brown  in  tint.  The 
same  traveller  de- 
scribes the  Ba- 
bunda , farther  to 
the  south-east  in 

PPnf-rP  nf  tV|P  269.  A SKULL  (FEMALE)  OF  SOUTH  BAMBALA  TRIBE,  KWILU 

. . RIVER,  S.W.  CONGOLAND  (TORDAY  COLLECTION) 

Kasai  - Kwilu  dis- 
trict, as  very  dark  in  skin  colour,  of  heavy  build,  and  large  boned. 
The  Bambala  of  the  Kwango- Kasai  region  do  not  seem  to 
be  an  especially  ugly  or  degraded  race — ethnically,  they  stand 
fairly  high  among  the  Congo  peoples  ; but  Professor  D.  J. 
Cunningham  remarks  that  the  Bambala  skull 1 illustrated  on 
page  525  “is  markedly  prognathous,  dolichocephalic,  and  has 
its  two  nasal  bones  completely  fused.” 

All  the  peoples  of  south-west  Congoland  between  the  lower 
Kwango  and  lower  Kasai  appear  to  be  interrelated  physically, 
though  they  may  differ  in  language,  arts,  and  customs.  They 
are  noteworthy  for  the  marked  prognathism  of  their  skulls. 
This  trait  now  characterizes  the  eastern  Bayanzi  as  compared 
with  the  western. 

The  Bashilange  north  of  the  central  Kasai  are  among  the 
black  races  who  are  the  most  intelligent,  powerful,  and  capable 

1 Of  Mr.  Torday’s  collection. 


528  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

of  improvement  in  Africa.  Their  villages  are  arranged  in 
groups,  and  crossed  by  fine  roads  fringed  with  banana  and  palm 
trees.  They  are  akin  to  the  Luba  group. 

The  most  remarkable  Bantu  peoples  of  the  central  Congo 
basin  are,  without  doubt,  the  Bayanzi  (Babangi),  Bang  ala,  and 
Ngombe , together  with  the  closely  allied  Bangata , Akula , 
Bamangi , Babwela , Bakatula , Abuja , and  Bapoto  of  the 
northern  Congo.  Linguistically,  there  is  a nearer  relation- 
ship between  the  Bayanzi  and  the  Bangala  than  there  is 
between  the  Yanzi  language  and  all  the  various  Ngombe 

o o o 


2 70.  SKULL  (FEMALE)  IN  TWO  DIFFERENT  ASPECTS  OF  SOUTH  BAMBALA  TYPE. 
SAME  SPECIMEN  AS  NO.  269  (TORDAY) 


dialects.  [The  Bangata  speech  may  be  connected  more  with 
Lolo  than  with  Yanzi.]  But  physically  there  is  an  obvious 
resemblance  between  all  these  riverain  tribes  of  the  north- 
western Congo,  the  northern  Kasai,  and  the  lower  reaches 
of  the  Mubangi,  Mongala,  Ruki,  Rubi,  Lulongo,  and  Lopori. 
Their  beauty  of  bodily  proportion  and  of  poise  indicates  that 
subtle  element  of  the  Caucasian,  coming  through  the 
Ethiopian  and  the  Nilotic  negro,  which  in  the  case  of  the 
Balolo-Bayanzi-Bangala-Ngombe  came  rather  from  the  south- 
east than  from  the  north,  the  reverse  almost  of  the  route 
followed  by  the  same  element  in  the  northern  basin  of  the 
Congo.  The  Bantu-speaking  Ababua  of  the  Wele  and  the 
upper  Rubi,  and  the  non- Bantu  Banza  and  Sango-Mongwandi 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


529 


of  the  Mongala  and  Dua,  meet  and  mingle  with  the  Poto, 
Buja,  Bwela,  Ngombe,  and  Ngala  coming  up  from  the  south. 
There  is  a great  physical  resemblance  between  all  these 
tribes;  but  the  northern  groups  may  derive  their  element  of 
Caucasian  comeliness  from  the  regions  of  eastern  Nigeria,  the 
Bahr-al-Ghazal,  and  the  Mountain  Nile,  while  the  Bayanzi- 
Ngombe  peoples  have  received  their  tinge  of  Ethiopian  blood 
through  the  Bakuba-Baluba  aristocracy  in  the  south-east.1 

The  now  dwindling  Bayanzi,  who  at  one  time  dominated 
the  carrying  trade 
of  the  western 
Congo  between 
Stanley  Pool  and 
the  Equator,  were 
some  twenty  years 
ago  the  more  or 
less  indigenous 
people  along  the 
south  or  east  bank 
of  the  Congo  from 
the  Kwa-Kasai 
junction  to  Irebu. 

They  also  dwelt  in 
patches  along  the 
north  or  west  bank 
from  about  twenty 
miles  north  of  the  Nkenye  River  to  the  delta  of  the  Mu- 
bangi,  and  up  the  Mubangi  for  thirty  or  forty  miles.  Allied 
in  language  with  the  real  Babangi  (seemingly)  were  the  so-called 
Bayanzi  people  between  the  east  bank  of  the  Congo  and 

1 But  though  the  Hamitic  or  Hima  element  found  a fresh  focus  of  development 
and  influence  in  the  lands  between  Sankuru  and  Kasai,  it  had  obviously  migrated 
thither  some  seven  or  eight  hundred  years  ago  (or  earlier)  from  the  countries  west  of 
the  Victoria  Nyanza,  and  of  course  ultimately  from  Galaland  or  the  Nile  valley.  The 
place  of  origin  of  the  Bayanzi  has  long  been  a subject  of  controversy  among  African 
authorities.  Stanley  first  reported  them  in  1877  as  being  the  dominant  river  people 
between  the  Equator  and  Stanley  Pool.  He  gave  their  tribal  name  as  “Yanzi” 
(Byyanzi  was  often  his  spelling).  The  present  writer,  following  him  in  the  western 
Congo,  described  them  under  the  same  appellation — Yanzi,  which  was  certainly  the 
one  employed  in  his  hearing.  Comber,  Grenfell,  and  Bentley,  on  the  other  hand, 
adopted  (the  last-named  with  some  vehemence)  the  term  Bangi  (Babangi,  Bobangi). 
Bentley,  indeed,  asserted  that  “Yanzi,”  “Bayanzi”  was  a misnomer,  a non-existent 
name  due  to  some  mishearing  or  misunderstanding  on  the  part  of  Stanley.  The 
present  writer,  however,  can  affirm  that  in  1883  it  was  the  commonest  designation  of 
this  trading  race  of  the  western  Upper  Congo  amongst  the  Bakongo  who  came  to 
Stanley  Pool,  amongst  the  Bayanzi  themselves,  and  the  Babuma  of  the  Kwa  River. 
The  Bateke,  however,  called  them  Babano. 

Torday  was  the  first  explorer  to  revive  the  discredited  name  Baya?izi.  He  found 
this  in  common  use  in  the  regions  of  the  lower  Kasai.  He  and  Frobenius,  indeed, 
11. — D 


530  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Lakes  Leopold  and  Ntomba  ( Ba-moye , ? Ba-nunu,  Bampama , 
Bangata,  Losakani ,l  and  Bokuti , though  the  Bakuti  are  also 
claimed  as  dwarfs  and  as  an  outlying  Bangala  people).  Gren- 
fell found  colonies  of  Yanzi-speaking  people  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Lulongo  River,  and  high  up  its  affluent,  the  Lopori.  Gren- 
fell himself  thought  they  might  have  reached  the  main  Congo 
from  the  east,  travelling  along  the  Busira-Juapa. 

His  guess  (judging  by  language  indications)  is  probably 
nearest  to  the  truth,  the  only  alternative  being  to  regard  their 
origin  as  taking  place  from  that  womb  of  adventurous  Bantu 


272.  SKULL  (MALE)  OF  NORTH  BAMBALA  NEGRO  (SAME  AS  NO.  27 1 ) 


peoples,  northern  Lubaland,2  and  their  migration  route  west- 
wards as  having  followed  more  or  less  the  Lukenye  River  or 
the  Kasai. 

No  doubt  they  may  have  made  a fresh  home  and  centre  of 
activity  in  the  delta  of  the  Mubangi  River,  from  which  they 
came  to  be  known  in  the  westernmost  part  of  their  range  as 
Bobangi  or  Babangi. 

assisted  to  clear  up  the  Bayanzi  or  Babangi  mystery  by  identifying  this  tribe  (under 
various  designations)  among  the  peoples  of  the  lower  Kasai  basin.  “ The  Bayanzi,” 
he  says,  “extend  a long  way  up  the  Kasai-Kwilu,  and  seem,  according  to  Frobenius, 
to  include  the  Bakonde  and  Badinga.  The  best  physical  types  of  this  race, 
apparently,  are  found  away  from  the  river  banks.”  Torday,  however,  deprecates  a 
hasty  conclusion  that  his  “ Bayanzi  ” are  identical  with  those  of  Stanley  (dwelling  on 
the  main  Congo),  who  are  perhaps  more  correctly  styled  Bobangi  or  Baba?igi. 

1 According  to  Stapleton,  the  Losakani  speak  a Lolo  dialect. 

2 The  valley  of  the  lower  Sankuru. 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


53i 


A somewhat  similar  history  has  no  doubt  been  that  of  the 
closely  allied  Bangala.  The  universal  name  now  applied  to 
this  river  people  of  the  northern  Congo  arises  from  a European 
misunderstanding.  There  is  or  was  a large  settlement  of  this 
people  at  Mangala,  near  the  confluence  of  the  Mongala  River. 
From  this  they  derived  a generic  name  which  they  do  not 
themselves  recognize.  The  Ngala  group  of  peoples  owning 
the  common  ties  of  language  (with  dialectal  differences)  are  the 
Baloi(?)}  Bantoni,  and  Bampondo  of  the  lower  Mubangi,  Boloki 
and  Liboko  (?  and  Akula)  along  the  north  bank  of  the  main 
Congo,  and  the  Boloki , Bolombo , Dibululct , Bokumbi , and 
Mbala  of  the  south  bank.  Some  of  these  Ngala  tribes  extend 
up  the  lower 
courses  of  the 
Ruki  - Busira  and 
the  Lulongo. 

The  N gombe 
people,  according 
to  Stapleton,  in- 
habit the  inland 
country  behind  the 
Bomangi  - Bopoto 
settlements  on  the 
north  bank  of  the 
northern  Conoco. 

The  general  term 
Ngombe  (of  doubt- 
ful origin1)  includes 
the  Mabali , Bwela, 

Buja , and  perhaps  Akula  and  Baati  tribes  north  of  the  Congo. 
They  are  also  met  with  in  separate  colonies  behind  both  east  and 
west  banks  of  the  lower  Mubangi.  They  are,  however,  most 
strongly  represented  along  or  behind  the  south  bank  of  the 
northern  Congo  between  Irebu  in  the  far  west  and  the  Lomami 
in  the  far  east.  They  seem  to  be  almost  the  exclusive  inhabi- 
tants of  the  long  narrow  strip  of  country  between  the  main 
Congo  and  the  Lopori- Lulongo. 

As  regards  Babangi,  Bangala,  and  Ngombe  alike,  except 
when  rendered  hideous  by  cicatrices  or  artificial  deformations, 

1 The  designation  of  “Ngombe”  is  a difficult  problem  to  solve.  Nearly  all 
Congo  travellers  persist  in  using  the  racial  name  Ngombe  as  a general  designation 
for  this  much-scattered  tribe.  There  is  more  than  a suspicion  that  Ngombe  is  simply 
a Swahili  and  in  general  a Bantu  root  for  “ high  bank,”  “ high  ground  beyond  water,” 
“ interior,”  “bush  people”  ; yet  the  word  seems  to  have  been  naturally  in  use  amongst 
the  Bayanzi  and  Bangala  to  express  the  wilder  people  behind  their  settlements. 


273.  SKULL  (MALE)  OF  BAHUANA  NEGRO, 
KWILU  RIVER  (TORDAY) 


532  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  faces  of  the  men  are  nearly  always  agreeable,  and  even 
handsome,  exhibiting  no  marked  prognathism.  The  women, 
though  generally  pleasant-looking,  have  a lower  facial  angle. 
The  bodies  of  the  men  are  almost  perfect  in  proportion — 
according  to  a European  standard.  They  sometimes  reach 
the  climax  of  negro  beauty,  from  the  sculptural  point  of  view. 
The  women  fall  away  from  our  European  ideal  of  figure,  but 
they  are  more  comely  than  the  average  negress. 

“ Physically  the  Bayanzi  of  the  Congo  are  of  a fine  appearance.  In 
general  their  height  is  above  the  medium,  in  some  cases  considerably 


274.  SKULL  (MALE)  OF  BAHUANA  NEGRO  SAME  AS  NO.  2 73  (TORDAY) 


so.  The  body  is  well  set  up,  the  limbs  wiry  though  somewhat  slight, 
the  shoulders  broad,  the  chest  well  built,  but  the  muscles  of  the  arms 
somewhat  poorly  developed.  The  face,  slightly  flattened,  gives  them  a 
characteristic  physiognomy ; the  facial  angle  is  high,  the  head  round, 
rarely  pointed.  The  beard  is  thin,  and  but  rarely  seen.  Chiefs  alone 
wear  it  on  the  chin,  when  it  is  usually  plaited ; with  this  exception,  in 
favour  of  members  of  ruling  families,  all  the  Bayanzi,  men  and  women, 
pluck  all  the  hairs  from  the  face,  eyelashes  and  eyebrows  included.” 

The  Ngombe  people  are  (according  to  Torday)  “splendidly 
built  and  of  an  irreproachable  frame.  It  is  impossible  to 
imagine  beings  better  formed.”  The  Bangala  and  Bapoto 
might  be  defined  by  the  same  words.  It  is  not  until  one  passes 
the  Rubi  confluence  with  the  Congo  (going  eastwards)  that  the 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


533 

short  legs  and  long  arms  of  the  Forest  negro  begin  to  affect  the 
handsome  proportions  of  the  riverain  folk. 

The  Bangala  and  allied  tribes  have  furnished  the  State 
with  the  best  and  most  faithful  of  its  soldiers.  Grenfell  writes 
the  following  passage  illustrating  their  disposition  : — 


“ Our  Bangala  are  a rowdy  lot.  Such  a time  we  are  having ! 
Palavers  no  end.  Yet 
they  are  a fine  lot  of 
people,  and  should 
make  a niche  for  them- 
selves in  the  history  of 
the  Congo.  Brave  to 
desperation.  . . . 

Steamer  going  ahead 
full  speed,  over  they  go 
to  get  anything,  and 
not  feeling  sure  we 
shall  stop  to  pick  them 
up  or  that  they  can 
keep  afloat  till  then. 

One  of  our  men  tackled 
a six-foot  crocodile 
and  caught  him ; also 
wounds  enough  to 
cripple  him  for  a 
mouth.” 


Amongst  the 
negroid  races  of  the 
northern  Congo, 
the  Manbettu  were 
early  singled  out  for 
description  by  Euro- 
pean Congo  ex- 
plorers. Their  geo- 
graphical distribu- 
tion  has  been 
already  indicated  in 

chapter  xiv.  The  territory  they  occupy  is  approximately 
bounded  by  the  second  degree  of  N.  Lat.  on  the  south 
and  40  30'  on  the  north,  28°  30'  E.  Long.  (Greenwich)  on  the 
east  and  270  E.  Long,  on  the  west. 

Schweinfurth  was  the  first  European  to  describe  them  after 
his  discovery  of  the  Wele  in  1870.  He  called  them  “ Mon- 
buttu.”  Junker  made  a much  longer  stay  in  their  country  in 
1881  and  transcribed  the  name  as  Mangbattu  [Manbettu  seems 


275.  BANGALA  PEOPLE  (NEW  ANTWERP) 


534  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

nearest  the  native  pronunciation].  Just  before  Junker  reached 
the  Wele,  Munza,  the  powerful  monarch  of  the  Manbettu  so 
graphically  depicted  by  Schweinfurth,  had  been  killed  in  a fight 
with  the  Nubian  slave-traders  of  the  Bahr-al-Ghazal.  Many 
princes  of  the  royal  house  fell  at  the  same  time,  and  the  Man- 
bettu kingdom  was  dismembered. 

For  some  years  the  Sudanese  slave-traders,  aided  from  time 
to  time  by  the  Mahdists,  endeavoured  to  rule  Manbettuland 
through  a number  of  petty  chiefs.  But  the  adherents  and 
relatives  of  Munza  kept  up  a continual  guerilla  warfare,  and  by 

the  time  the  Belgian  pioneers 
came  on  the  scene  in  the  early 
’nineties  they  found  the  Su- 
danese slave-traders  and  Mah- 
dists expelled,  while  they  were 
just  in  time  (under  Ponthier) 
to  save  the  remains  of  the 
Manbettu  from  being  con- 
quered by  the  more  powerful 
and  resolute  “Arabs”1  of  Tan- 
ganyika. 

The  far-reaching  rule  of 
Munza  was  apparently  not  re- 
stored by  the  Belgians  in  the 
person  of  any  member  of 
M unza’s  dynasty — a dynasty 
which  native  tradition  carried 
back  for  over  a hundred  years  ; 
but  the  different  clans  of  the  (so- 
called)  Manbettu  people  have 
each  their  independent  chief. 

This  is  a people  obviously  of  very  mixed  elements.  One  or 
more  of  the  sub-tribes  still  bear  names  of  possibly  Bantu  origin, 
such  as  the  Bangba  of  north  Manbettuland,  who  recall  the 
Bangba  of  the  central  Aruwimi.  The  serfs  are  of  the  average 
Forest  negro  type,  the  nobles  and  princes  obviously  of  an 
Ethiopian  caste,  though  not  so  pronouncedly  “ Hamitic”  as  the 
Ba-hima  or  Fula.  The  skins  of  the  men  and  women  of  this 
aristocracy  are  a pale  olive-brown,  the  features  of  the  face  (in 
the  men  especially)  are  refined,  the  nose  well  bridged,  though 
the  nostrils  are  rather  broad  and  spreading.  The  eyes  are  large, 
well  shaped,  and  far  apart,  the  lips  are  less  coarse  than  those  of 
the  average  negro.  The  men  grow  an  ample  moustache  and  a 

1 Really,  of  course,  Arabized  Manyema  for  the  most  part. 


276.  A BANGALA  TYPE 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


535 


thick,  square  beard.  Their  bodies  tend  to  be  rather  hairy  ; 
their  proportions  are  good,  though  the  stature  is  not  exception- 
ally tall,  as  it  is  amongst  the  Ba-hima. 

This  ruling  caste  of  the  Manbettu  is  endowed  with  an  intelli- 
gence and  judgment  which  few  Africans  possess.  Their  word 
is  to  be  relied  on,  and  their  friendship  is  lasting.  The  Sudanese 
slave  and  ivory  traders  who  dwelt  among  them  at  the  time  of 
Sch  weinfurth’s  visit 
had  not  enough  pane- 
gyrics to  praise  the 
constancy  of  their  affec- 
tion, their  military  ex- 
cellence, their  skill,  and 
their  bravery. 

Their  industries  are 
comparatively  highly 
developed  : as  potters, 
carvers,  and  boat- 
builders,  they  have  no 
rivals  in  all  this  region. 

But  it  is  above  all  in 
the  art  of  building  that 
their  knowledge  and 
competency  display 
themselves.  In  the 
size,  arrangement,  and 
richness  of  their  deco- 
ration, their  dwellings 
are  superior  to  all 
those  described  by 
travellers  in  Central 
Africa.  The  great  hall 
of  the  palace  of  Munza 
depicted  by  Schwein- 
furth  was  ninety-three 
feet  long  by  forty-six  and  a half  broad,  and  thirty-nine  feet 
high.  In  shape  it  recalled  a European  railway  station  ; its 
vault  rested  on  three  rows  of  columns  of  glossy  wood  richly 
ornamented  and  full  of  taste. 

Among  the  Manbettu  the  chiefs  enjoy  prerogatives  far  more 
extended  than  those  of  the  Nyamnyam.  To  the  ivory 
monopoly  they  formerly  united  a revenue  of  regular  contribu- 
tions, levied  on  the  products  of  the  earth.  Besides  their  body- 
guard, they  had  a considerable  number  of  attendants.  Munza 


277.  A WOMAN  OF  THE  NORTHERN  NGOMBE  TYPE 
FROM  NEIGHBOURHOOD  OF  BOPOTO, 
NORTHERN  CONGO 


536  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

never  left  his  residence  without  being  accompanied  by  a suite  of 
many  hundreds,  armed  with  pure  copper  lances,  glittering  in  the 
sun,  and  he  was  always  preceded  by  a file  of  drums,  and  by 
trumpeters  and  runners  beating  iron  bells. 

As  a dialect  of  the  Manbettu  language  is  spoken  by  the 
Pygmies  north  of  the  Aruwimi,  and  another  dialect  by  the  Mabode 
and  again  by  the  “ Mombutu  ” (if  there  is  any  real  distinction 
between  “ Mombutu  ” and  Manbettu),  and  as  there  is  a very 
slight  resemblance  in  word  roots  between  Manbettu  and  the  lan- 
guages of  the  Ndonga  (upper  Rubi  River)  and  of  the  Bamanga 


278.  BANGALA  PEOPLE  OF  THE  UPPER  CONGO,  NORTH  SHORE 


(between  Stanley  Falls  and  the  Lindi  River)  : this  Manbettu 
or  Mombutu  language  group  may  be  the  characteristic  speech 
of  a north-east  Congoland  congeries  of  negroes,  and  not  the 
introduced  language  of  the  Ethiopian  aristocracy  which  domi- 
nates the  Manbettu  country. 

The  Nyamnyam  are  divided  into  a number  of  tribes.  The 
two  more  universal  native  designations  seem  to  be  Makarka 
and  Azande.  The  principal  tribal  designations  are  given  in 
chapter  xiv.,  and  in  some  cases  may  have  been  originally 
Bantu,  the  names,  still  lingering  in  the  land,  of  Bantu  peoples 
conquered  and  assimilated  by  the  Nyamnyam. 

Amongst  the  chiefs  there  is  a physical  type  predominating 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


537 


which  is  decidedly  negroid  rather  than  negro,  and  recalls  the 
Abyssinian  or  Gala  : in  fact,  is  Ethiopian,  and  of  the  same 
source  as  the  Hima  aristocracy  of  Uganda,  and  possibly  of 
Manbettu-land.  But  it  is  a great  mistake  to  class  all  the  Nyam- 
nyam  people  as  negroid. 

The  bulk  of  them  are  of 
the  average  Sudan  negro 
type,  which  is  a varying 
degree  of  intermixture 
between  Forest  negro 
and  Nilotic,  with  an  oc- 
casional suggestion  of 
Congo  Pygmy  or  Hot- 
tentot. The  same  de- 
scription applies  to  the 
Nsakara,  who  may  be 
related  linguistically  to 
the  Nyamnyam,  or  yet 
again  may  be  semi- Bantu. 

Thus  the  basin  of  the 
Congo,  as  the  reader  will 
have  perceived  from  this 
review,  is  inhabited  al- 
most entirely  by  the  negro 
species  in  more  or  less 
typical  form,  tinged  in 
many  parts  by  the  Cau- 
casian races  of  north- 
eastern Africa. 

But  there  is  a slight 
infiltration  of  European 
blood  in  the  extreme 
south-west  and  along  the 
Congo  coast-line  between 
Angola  and  Luango. 

This  very  slight  element  279.  ilua,  the  pilot  of  the  mission  steamers, 
of  the  white  man  is  due  a mongata  from  the  western  equatorial 

to  ancient  and  modern  are  aiiw  th«  Baya„zi  and  the  Baioio.) 

Portuguese  intermixture 

with  the  coast  negroes,  with  here  and  there  a slight  infusion  of 
Dutch  and  French  blood,  and  possibly  a few  descendants  of 
British  bluejackets  about  Kabinda.  This  tinge  of  the  western 
Caucasian  is  very  slight  indeed,  but  yet  has  sensibly  modified  the 
features  and  complexions  of  the  coast  people.  It  has  given  a 


commerce  and  agriculture  is  making  for  them  a notable  position 
in  the  development  of  Portuguese  Africa.  Races  like  these 
traders  of  Ambaka,  distinctly  tinged  with  the  blood  of  the 
old  Portuguese  Conquistadores,  have  penetrated  across  the 
Kwango  into  the  Lunda  countries ; and  Portuguese  half-castes 
during  the  last  two  centuries  have  influenced  the  blood  and 
appearance  of  the  ruling  families  in  the  western  part  of  the 
now  disintegrated  Lunda  empire. 


538  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

fuller  beard  to  the  men  here  and  there,  and  prettier  features  and 
lighter  complexions  to  the  women. 

Penetrating  inland  from  St.  Paul  de  Loanda  up  the  Kwanza 
River  to  Ambaka,  it  has  created  the  caste  of  the  Ambaquistas : 
well-educated  Portuguese-speaking  negroes,  whose  energy  in 


280.  A GROUP  OF  MEN,  WOMEN,  AND  CHILDREN  OF  THE  BWELA  COUNTRY  BETWEEN 
THE  MOTIMA  AFFLUENT  OF  THE  MONGALA  AND  THE  NORTHERN  CONGO 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


539 


In  the  eastern  part  of  Congoland  there  is  a slight  infusion 
of  the  Arab,  and  even  of  the  Dravidian  ; 1 but  the  Arab  type 
that  founded — or  just  failed  to  found — a huge  Muhammadan 
state  between  Tanganyika  and  the  Lomami  was  already  so 
infused  with  negro  blood  in  most  instances  as  not  to  produce  by 
its  intermixture  with  native  women  anything  like  a half-caste 
type.  There  are  of  course  a few  Arabs  of  the  Oman  race 
[which  is  physically  related  to  the  Armenian  and  Persian,  with 
a long,  long  nose,  a spare  habit  of  body,  a yellowish  skin,  and 
full  beard].  As  at  Zanzibar,  so  in  the  heart  of  Central  Africa, 
all  degrees  of  intermixture  between  Arab  and  negro  have 
resulted  in  a remarkably 
fine  cross,  so  far  as 
physical  development  and 
intelligence  are  con- 
cerned. 

A great  many  different 
estimates  have  been  put 
forward  durinor  the  last 
twenty-five  years  as  to 
the  total  population  of 
the  Conoco  Free  State. 

o 

Stanley  in  1885  placed 
the  total  (on  very  little 
evidence)  at  30,000,000. 

The  district  of  the 
Lower  Congo  under  Bel- 
gian rule  (which  we 
might  consider  to  be 
bounded  on  the  north  and  east  by  the  Kwa- Kwango  rivers) 
probably  contains  in  all  400,000  people.  The  Central  Congo , 
bounded  by  the  Congo  on  the  north,  the  Lomami  on  the 
east,  and  the  Kasai- Sankuru  on  the  south,  has  undoubtedly 
been  much  depopulated  by  the  foolish  or  criminal  policy 
of  the  concessionnaire  companies  and  the  administration  of 
the  Crown  Domain,  and  the  population  in  the  northern 
part  of  this  central  region  may  have  undergone  a marked 

1 In  the  ’fifties,  ’sixties,  and  ’seventies  of  the  last  century,  numerous  Baluch 
traders,  soldiers,  or  adventurers  penetrated  inland  from  Zanzibar  with  Arab  caravans. 
They  represented  a tall,  rather  handsome,  light-skinned,  very  hairy  type  of  northern 
Dravidian,  the  Dravidian  element  which  is  mixed  with  the  eastern  race  of  Mediter- 
ranean man.  These  Baluch  adventurers  were  greatly  admired  by  the  native  women 
for  their  full  beards  and  handsome  features,  and  begat  such  a numerous  progeny  in 
the  regions  east  and  south-west  of  Tanganyika  as  to  have  left  a distinct  trace  in  the 
modern  population. 


281.  BAYANZI  SKULL  (MALE)  FROM  MBONGO, 
NEAR  BOLOBO,  WESTERN  CONGO 
(Collected  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston.) 


540  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


diminution  since  the  assumption  of  European  control  (though 
probably  quite  as  many  people  have  lost  their  lives  through 
sleeping  sickness  as  through  atrocities,  raids,  punitive  expedi- 
tions, and  that  incessant  deportation  of  children  to  centres  of 
education,  on  the  plea  of  their  being  orphans).  In  this  vast 
region  of  the  Central  Congo  there  are,  in  the  riverain  district  at 
the  back  of  Bolobo,  about  300,000  people,  about  2,500,000  in 
the  Equatorial  district,  including  the  western  basin  of  the 
Lomami,  and  about  1,500,000  in  the  Lake  Leopold  II  district 
and  the  adjacent  territories  down  to  the  Kasai-Sankuru  and  up 
to  the  Lomami. 

In  the  region  between  the  Kwango  and  the  Kasai  there 

is  a population 
approximately  of 

700.000.  Between 
the  Kasai,  San- 
kuru,  Lomami, 
and,  on  the  south, 
the  Zambezi  water- 
shed, there  may 
be  as  many  as 

1.000. 000.  Ka- 
tanga, construed 
in  its  largest  geo- 
graphical sense  as 
being  all  the  re- 
gion of  the  upper 
Lualaba,  has  not 
perhaps  more 
than  500,000  peo- 
ple, if  as  many. 

Between  the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika  and  the  upper  Lomami, 
across  the  Lualaba , there  has  been  much  depopulation  owing 
to  sleeping  sickness,  small  pox,  military  mutinies,  and  old 
Arab  raids.  In  all  this  considerable  stretch  of  territory 
there  cannot  be  more  than  about  1,250,000  inhabitants. 
There  are  another  million  between  the  River  Lindi  on  the 
north,  the  Anglo-German  frontier  on  the  east,  and  the  Lomami 
on  the  west. 

Probably  the  Northern  tei'ritories  of  the  Congo  are  the  best 
peopled,  just  as  (outside  the  area  of  the  rubber  concessions)  they 
show  the  clearest  proofs  of  benefit  derived  from  White  adminis- 
tration. In  this  region,  bounded  by  the  Mubangi-Mbomu  and 
the  Congo-Nile  water-parting  on  the  north,  by  the  main  Congo 


282.  SKULL  OF  A MALE  MUYANZI,  OF  THE  EASTERN 
TYPE,  FROM  THE  KWILU  RIVER,  S.W.  CONGOLAND 
(TORDAY  COLLECTION) 


ANTHROPOLOGY 


54i 


and  Aruwimi-Ibina  on  the  south,  there  are  quite  6,000,000 
people  (excluding  the  population  of  the  Lado  Enclave). 
Adding  to  these  calculations  an  approximate  350,000  to  cover 
the  purely  riverain  population  of  the  main  Congo- Lualaba, 
between  Stanley  Pool  and  the  junction  of  the  Lualaba  and 
Lukuga,  we  arrive  at  a total  sum  of  15,500,000  as  the 
probably  correct  estimate  of  the  present  native  population 
in  the  Congo  Free  State. 

Stanley  assumed  that  the  banks  of  the  Congo  between 
Stanley  Falls  and  Stanley  Pool  were  densely  peopled.  But  his 
estimates  undoubtedly  were  exaggerated.  Writing  in  1902, 
Grenfell  expressed 
himself  as  follows  : — 

“The  difficulty  of  ob- 
taining food  from  the  na- 
tives is  hardly  credible  to 
those  who  regard  the 
Congo  banks  as  populous 
and  fertile ; if  they  were 
more  populous  they  could 
easily  be  made  productive. 

As  things  are  at  present, 
steamers  going  down  to 
the  Pool  have  to  shorten 
their  stay  to  the  fewest 
possible  days  on  account 
of  the  difficulty  experi- 
enced in  feedin  g their 
crews,  and  after  leaving 
the  Pool,  nothing  or  next 
to  nothing  is  to  be  ob- 
tained for  the  first  180 
miles.  The  great  lack  is 
that  of  people  to  cultivate 
the  ground.  After  carefully  counting  the  houses  in  the  villages 
on  the  banks  of  the  river,  and  allowing  a very  full  average  for  the 
inhabitants  of  each  house,  it  is  perfectly  clear  that  there  are  not 
more  than  125.000  people  in  the  villages  and  towns  along  the  980 
miles  of  waterway.  The  great  necessity  of  the  Congo,  as  of  all 
African  colonies,  is  people  for  its  development.  We  know  there  are 
many  places  in  the  Congo  State  where  the  population  is  much  more 
dense  than  on  the  river  banks,  but  nowhere  else  are  people  of  such 
advantage  to  the  Government  or  to  commerce  as  they  would  be 
if  settled  on  the  banks  of  the  great  central  waterway  of  the  continent. 
A policy  which  made  the  river  banks  to  be  more  desired  by  the  people 
than  the  interior  would  best  serve  the  interests  of  the  State,  and  would 
help  forward  at  a greatly  quickened  pace  the  opening  up  and  civili- 
zation of  the  country.” 


542  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Statements  have  appeared,  I am  told,  to  the  effect  that  the 
native  population  along  the  banks  of  the  main  Congo  was 
reduced  to  a little  over  a thousand,  and  so  forth.  There  is 
a good  deal  of  missionary  testimony  to  the  effect  that  the 
riverain  peoples  have  diminished  considerably  since  1885,  but 
probably  Grenfell’s  estimate  of  125,000  in  1902  is  equally  true 
of  the  present  day. 

Lord  Mountmorres  pointed  out  that  between  Stanley’s  first 
detailed  impressions  of  the  Upper  Congo  and  the  period 
of  note-taking  on  the  part  of  later  explorers  had  ensued  the 
disastrous  raids  of  Tipu-Tipu  and  the  Arabs  (often  alluded  to 

by  Grenfell),  resulting 
in  the  practical  anni- 
hilation of  the  indige- 
nous population  along 
the  river  banks  be- 
tween Stanley  Falls 
and  the  mouth  of  the 
Aruwimi,  while  un- 
doubtedly the  Arabs 
caused  much  loss  of 
life  amongst  the  na- 
tives  up  and  down  the 
unfortunate  Lomami 
River.  We  also  know, 
according  to  Grenfell’s 
testimony,  that  the 
Arabs  or  their  Man- 
yema  slaves  practi- 
cally wiped  out  the 
indigenous  population  of  the  upper  Aruwimi  and  Ituri. 

It  seems,  however,  to  be  the  case  that  the  riverain  popula- 
tion along  the  Upper  Congo  between  Bolobo  and  New  Antwerp 
has  increased  of  late.  This  is  not  observable  to  those  who 
travel  on  steamers,  because  steamers  usually  follow  the  right  or 
north  bank;  but  to  anyone  who  explores  the  Upper  Congo  in 
a native  canoe  and  follows  more  closely  the  left  or  southern 
bank,  the  riverain  population  is  a large  one,  especially  as  this 
is  the  better  fishing-ground.  To  this  Grenfell  in  various  notes 
has  drawn  attention,  as  also  to  the  great  increase  in  population 
during  recent  years  on  the  Aruwimi  and  the  lower  Mubangi. 

As  to  the  Aruwimi,  Lord  Mountmorres  (and  he  is  con- 
firmed by  other  travellers)  states  that  the  banks  of  this  river 
(at  any  rate  in  its  lower  portion)  are  now  so  densely  populated 


284.  SKULL  OF  LOWER  CONGO  NEGRO  (MALE), 
PROBABLY  FROM  BOMA 
Collected  by  Captain  Fishburn,  r.n.,  Congo  Expedition,  1816. 


285.  A BOLOBO  CHIEF  (EKWAYULU)  AND  HIS  WIVES  AND  SON 
Examples  of  the  mixed  aboriginal  and  Bayanz  population  of  the  banks  of  the  Western  Congo  between  Stanley  Pool  and  Lukolela. 


U3RARY 
OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 


II. — E 


ANTHROPOLOGY  545 

that  one  may  travel  past  an  almost  unbroken  succession  of 
villages,  while  in  the  valley  of  the  Wele,  in  regions  described 
by  Schweinfurth  as  being  no  more  populated  than  Siberia,  this 
last-named  traveller  passed  for  days  either  along  rivers  or  roads 
through  a country  so  densely  populated  that  there  appeared  to 
be  no  open  land  in  the  immediate  neighbourhood  sufficient  to 
support  a further  increase.  This  dense  population  appears  to 
extend  from  the  middle  Mubangi-Wele  right  across  the  Banza 
country  to  the  lower  reaches  of  that  great  river.  In  these  lands 


286.  INQUISITIVE  BAPOTO  PEOPLE,  NORTHERN  CONGO 

one  may  march  for  a week  without  ever  being  out  of  sound  of 
human  habitation. 

There  is  also  a distinct  rise  in  the  population  now  stated  to 
be  occurring  in  the  countries  of  the  middle  Lualaba  and  in 
Manyemaland.  Sleeping  sickness  here  seems  to  be  diminish- 
ing in  its  ravages,  while  the  beneficent  work  of  the  railway 
construction  has  attracted  large  numbers  of  labourers,  who  get 
good  pay  and  good  food,  and  consequently  settle  down  near 
the  river  with  their  families.  On  the  other  hand,  between  the 
Lomami  and  Kasai  the  shocking  ravages  of  the  Zappo-Zaps 
still  continue,  according  to  the  statements  of  American 
missionaries. 

Various  travelling  missionaries  have  computed  that  within 


546  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  central  basin  of  the  Congo  there  has  been  a loss  of  not  less 
than  half  a million  people  between  1894  and  1907,  due  to 
loss  of  life  through  punitive  expeditions,  deportation  to  other 
districts,  sleeping  sickness,  and  other  maladies  and  epidemics 
caused  indirectly  by  neglect  of  agriculture  and  extreme  shortage 
of  food  supply.  A good  deal  of  labour  has  also  been  deported 
from  this  region,  either  as  conscripts  for  the  army  or  as  State 
labourers.  The  people  thus  taken  away  from  the  regions  of 
the  centre  seldom  or  never  return  to  their  homes  even  when 
free  to  do  so,  as  they  prefer  to  settle  in  the  west  or  north,  out 
of  the  range  of  concessionnaire  companies  or  the  special 
administration  of  the  vast  Crown  Domain. 


287.  A CHIEF  OF  THE  BWELA  PEOPLE,  NORTHERN  CONGO 


CHAPTER  XXII 


NATIVE  DISEASES 

THE  most  prominent  diseases  among  the  Congo  negroes 
and  the  most  fatal  are  sleeping  sickness , smallpox , 
dysentery , malarial  fever , and  pneumonia. 

It  is  fairly  certain  from  the  Arab  records  of  Western 
Nigeria  that  some  form  of  sleeping  sickness  was  known  there 
about  the  twelfth  century  of  the  present  era,  and  that  several 
notabilities  died  of  this  sleeping  disease.  It  was  certainly 
heard  of  in  sporadic  cases  on  the  Gambia,  at  Sierra  Leone, 
and  in  the  western  part  of  Liberia  between  about  1785  and 
1840.  Between  1820  and  1870  it  occurred  with  some  fre- 
quency in  the  coast  region  of  Liberia.  It  is  not  by  any  means 
extinct  in  that  country  yet.  The  Mandingo  trader  whose 
portrait  appears  as  a frontispiece  to  my  book  on  Liberia,  and 
who  travelled  with  me  on  the  St.  Paul’s  River  in  1904,  died  of 
sleeping  sickness  at  the  end  of  1905. 

Winwood  Reade  alludes  to  the  disease  as  one  that  is  well 
known  on  the  West  Coast  of  Africa.  This  would  be  about 
the  middle  of  the  ’sixties  of  the  last  century.  The  present 
writer  heard  a good  deal  about  the  sleeping  sickness  when 
he  first  visited  the  Congo  in  1882-3,  but  the  disease  appar- 
ently did  not  exist  then  east  of  Stanley  Pool.  One  only  heard 
of  cases  on  the  north  and  south  banks  of  the  Congo  between 
Matadi  and  the  sea. 

The  opening  up  of  the  Congo  by  Stanley’s  expedition  and 
other  agencies  seems  to  have  carried  sleeping  sickness  on  to 
the  upper  reaches  of  that  river,  from  which  it  rapidly  spread 
to  all  parts  of  the  Congo  basin,  making  a special  nidus  in  the 
Ituri  Forest  on  the  north-east  and  on  the  upper  Aruwimi  (I 
quote  from  information  given  me  in  1900  by  Swahili  traders 
and  intelligent  natives  coming  from  those  regions).  Emin 
Pasha’s  Sudanese  when  they  settled  down  in  the  Lendu 
country  to  the  west  of  Lake  Albert  seem  to  have  become 
infected  with  the  disease.  A portion  of  these  troops  was 
moved  somewhat  rapidly  into  Busoga,  the  district  of  the 

547 


548  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Uganda  Protectorate  which  is  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the 
Victoria  Nile  to  the  kingdom  of  Uganda.  After  the  Sudanese 
troops  of  Lugard’s  recruiting  had  thoroughly  settled  down  in 
Busoga,  sleeping  sickness  began  very  slowly  to  develop. 
Possibly  its  spread  was  checked  by  the  convulsions  and  dis- 
placement of  population  occurring  during  the  Uganda  mutiny. 
The  present  writer  first  heard  of  cases  of  sleeping  sickness 
[which  reminded  him  of  those  met  with  many  years  before  on 
the  Congo]  in  the  early  spring  of  1901,  when  visiting  the  coast 
of  Busoga  and  the  island  of  Buvuma.  Since  that  date  the 
history  of  this  disease  in  the  Uganda  Protectorate  is  too  well 
known  to  recapitulate. 

But  what  deserves  special  attention  at  this  moment  is  the 
appalling  ravages  of  sleeping  sickness  in  the  western  part  of 
the  Congo  basin,  as  reported  by  travellers  like  Torday  and 
Frobenius  and  by  numerous  missionaries.  It  seems  to  be  kill- 
ing out  sections  of  the  Bayaka  on  the  Kwango  River.  In 
some  of  these  districts  it  would  almost  seem  as  though  sleep- 
ing sickness  had  returned , as  though  somewhere  in  the  Congo 
basin  this  disease  had  acquired  a new,  a sudden,  and  very 
serious  virulence. 

I cannot  recall  any  traditions  or  recorded  history  of  the 
West  Coast  of  Africa  from  the  Senegal  to  the  Congo  mouth  in 
which  any  serious  epidemic  of  sleeping  sickness  is  mentioned. 
Through  the  centuries  which  have  elapsed  since  Arabized 
negroes  inscribed  the  history  of  the  Muhammadan  Mandingo 
kingdoms  round  the  sources  of  the  Niger,  sleeping  sickness 
has  been  a known  disease,  occurring  sporadically  here  and 
there,  but  never  to  such  an  extent  as  to  create  widespread 
alarm  or  serious  depopulation.  It  scarcely  bore  this  devastat- 
ing character  even  in  the  early  ’eighties,  when  it  affected  the 
Lower  Congo.  Indeed  the  records  of  the  Baptist  Mission  at 
San  Salvador,  etc.,  would  seem  to  show  that  sleeping  sickness 
has  come  back  there  from  the  east,  from  the  inland  basin  of  the 
Congo,  and  is  afflicting  the  country  far  worse  than  it  did  in  the 
’sixties  and  ’seventies.  The  matter  is  really  becoming  very 
urgent  for  those  who  take  an  interest  in  the  commercial 

development  of  Africa,  as  the  spread  of  the  disease  is 

attaining  such  proportions  as  may  almost  end  in  the  de- 
population of  the  Congo  basin  and  of  the  Uganda  Pro- 
tectorate, while  the  extension  of  the  malady  into  British 
Central  Africa  and  the  Egyptian  Sudan  is  also  a matter  of 

concern.  The  area  of  sleeping  sickness  certainly  seems  to 

be  limited  by  the  range  of  one  or  more  species  of  tsetse 


NATIVE  DISEASES 


549 


fly  that  do  not  care  about  parts  of  Africa  without  heavy 
rainfall  and  abundant  vegetation,  and  it  may  be  that  where 
these  forms  of  tsetse  cannot  live  no  other  agency  may 
be  present  to  transmit  the  trypanosomes  from  the  blood  of 
infected  human  beings  to  the  veins  of  other  people  not  yet 
inoculated. 

Sleeping  sickness  is  “a  human  tsetse  fly  disease.”1  How 
it  started  is  a mystery  as  much  unsolved  as  the  original  incep- 
tion of  most  other  diseases.  It  is  due  to  a trypanosome2 — 
possibly  Trypanosoma  gambiense — passing  from  the  blood  of  an 
infected  human  being  into  the  cerebro-spinal  fluid.  From  the 
moment  these  micro-organisms  enter  the  spinal  marrow,  and 
thence  the  brain,  death  is  almost  certain,  after  a more  or  less 
lengthy  period  of  increasing  somnolence. 

The  trypanosomes  which  cause  this 'disease  are  conveyed  to 
the  blood  of  human  beings  by  one  agency  only  (so  far  as  we 
know) — the  Glossina  palpalis  fly,  in  one  or  more  varieties. 
They  multiply  rapidly,  and  their  presence  in  the  blood  causes 
a peculiar  fever,  “ trypanosomiasis.”  Removed  from  further 
sources  of  infection  and  treated  with  proper  remedies  for 
expelling  the  trypanosomes  from  the  blood,  the  sick  person 
recovers  ; but  if  the  case  be  not  treated  promptly  the  organisms 
will  make  their  way  into  the  spinal  marrow  and  sleeping  sick- 
ness sets  in. 

The  fly  which  acts  as  the  principal  if  not  the  only  agent 
of  transmission  in  conveying  these  trypanosomes  to  the  human 
system — the  Glossina  palpalis — has  at  present  a range  extend- 


1 Further  Report  on  Sleeping  Sickness , by  Lt.-Col.  D.  Bruce,  Dr.  A.  Nabarro, 
and  Captain  Greig. 

2 The  genus  Trypanosoma  is  a micro-organism  of  the  class  Flagellata , sub- 
kingdom Protozoa.  The  flagellates  are  mobile  cells  very  similar  in  shape  and  move- 
ments to  the  spermatozoa  of  the  higher  animals  ( Metazoa ),  to  the  male  element  in 
life.  Apparently,  to  pass  completely  through  all  their  life  stages  and  be  able  to 
reproduce  sexually  instead  of  by  fission,  they  enter  the  digestive  organs  of  a gnat,  a 
fly,  some  other  insect,  or  possibly  a tick.  This  insect  host  conveys  the  multiplied 
trypanosomes  into  the  blood  of  the  creatures  it  sucks,  and  in  doing  so  receives 
apparently  more  germs  for  maturing  and  redistributing.  The  genus  Trypanosoma 
has  a terrible  record  as  a devastating  agency  among  vertebrates.  Trypanosoma 
evansii  is  the  cause  of  the  “ surra  ” disease  among  cattle,  sheep,  goats,  antelopes  in 
India  ; T.  bruceiis  the  germ  of  the  “nagana”  or  tsetse  disease  among  cattle  and  horses 
in  Africa  ; T.  rongete  produces  the  “ dourine”  malady  in  horses,  dogs,  and  rodents  in 
Hungary,  the  Mediterranean  basin,  and  Spanish  America ; in  the  last-named  region 
T.  equinum  imparts  the  “caderas”  or  falling  sickness  to  horses,  mules,  and  many 
other  mammals  ; T.  iheileri  is  the  origin  of  a bad  cattle  disease  in  the  Transvaal. 
According  to  Dr.  Marcus  Hartog  of  the  Cambridge  Natural  History , another 
flagellate,  nearly  allied  to  Trypanosoma — Treponema — is,  in  different  species,  respon- 
sible for  syphilis,  relapsing  fever,  and  that  terrible  African  skin  disease  the  “ yaws  ” 
(- Fratnbaesia ).  The  transmitting  agent  in  Indian  relapsing  fever  seems  to  be  the 
head  louse  ; in  Africa  it  is  a tick  [which  is  not  an  insect,  but  an  arachnid].  A tick 
also  seems  to  communicate  the  yaws  from  one  negro  to  another. 


550  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

in g from  the  Senegal  and  Gambia  to  the  Bahr-al-Ghazal,  the 
eastern  shore  of  the  Victoria  Nyanza,  and  the  west  coast  of 
Lake  Rudolph  up  to  the  River  Omo.  Southwards  it  ap- 
parently covers  the  whole  Congo  basin  up  to  Tanganyika  and 
the  Zambezi  watershed.1  In  Angola  it  develops  a local  variety 
— G.  palpalis  wellmani , discovered  by  Dr.  F.  C.  Wellman  near 
Benguela.  Benguela,  so  far,  is  the  southernmost  limit  of  the 
sleeping  disease  on  the  Angola  coast. 

The  appearance  of  Glossina  palpalis  is  sufficiently  indicated 
in  the  accompanying  illustrations,  which  I have  been  permitted 
to  publish  by  the  trustees  of  the  British  Museum  and  which 

are  adapted  from 
Mr.  Engel  Terzi’s 
illustrations  to  Mr. 
E.  E.  Austen’s 
monograph.  The 
smaller  figure  is 
approximately  life 
size  with  wings 
folded  over  back, 
the  position  as- 
sumed by  the  fly 
when  at  rest.  It 
is  never  seen  (un- 
like the  house  fly) 
with  separated 
wings  except  when 

288.  GLOSSINA  PALPALIS  : THE  TSETSE  FLY  THAT  111  A^^t. 

CARRIES  THE  TRYPANOSOME  OF  SLEEPING  SICKNESS  The  general 

colour  is  darkish 

brown.  The  veins  of  the  wings  are  brown,  the  back  of 
the  abdomen  is  blackish  brown,  the  back  of  the  thorax 
ash-grey  with  dark  brown  ocelli  and  markings.  It  is 
altogether  a much  darker  fly  in  coloration  than  the  other 
species  of  Glossina , and  perhaps  the  smallest  in  size. 

I have  mentioned  that  sleeping  sickness  was  known  in 
Angola  and  along  the  Lower  Congo  in  the  middle  of  the 

1 My  information  is  mainly  derived  from  the  monograph  of  the  Tsetse  Flies  by 
E.  E.  Austen  published  by  the  British  Museum  Trustees  in  1903,  and  the  later 
pamphlet  of  Mr.  Austen  on  the  Distribution  of  Tsetse  Flies  issued  in  1905  by  the 
Royal  Society.  In  his  earlier  monograph  Mr.  Austen  identifies  tsetse  flies  caught  by 
Sir  John  Kirk  on  the  (?  Central)  Zambezi  circa  i860  as  Glossina  palpalis  trachinoides , 
but  apparently  abandoned  this  definition  subsequently  in  defining  the  limits  of  the 
“sleeping-sickness  fly.”  Palpalis , however,  does  extend  to  the  south-eastern  parts 
of  the  Congo  basin,  and  already  sleeping  sickness  has  made  its  appearance  in  the 
northern  parts  of  British  Central  Africa. 


NATIVE  DISEASES 


55i 


nineteenth  century.  It  seemed  to  lessen  in  frequency  after  about 
1870,  but  reappeared  again  at  the  close  of  the  century  in  the 
kingdom  of  Kongo  (San  Salvador)  and  in  southern  Angola, 
coming  from  the  north-east.  At  the  same  time — between  1892 
and  1898 — it  spread  rapidly  eastwards  from  a centre  on  the 
Kwa  or  lower  Kasai,  reaching  the  Nile  watershed  on  the 
north-east  and  the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika  on  the  east. 
Thousands — perhaps  hundreds  of  thousands — of  negroes  have 
died  of  it  since  1895  along  the  main  course  of  the  Congo 
and  Mubangi,  up  the  Kasai,  on  the  Lualaba-Congo  and  along 
the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika.  As  related  on  p.  547,  it  seems 
to  have  reached  Lake  Albert  along  the  courses  of  the  Aruwimi 
and  Wele-Mubangi,  passing  from  the  head  waters  of  these 
rivers  to  the  Lendu  country  where  Emin  Pasha’s  Sudanese 
were  settled.  It  infected  their  Lendu  slaves  and  followers,  and 
thus  was  transported  in  the  subsequent  movements  of  the  troops 
to  Busoga  and  Uganda.  On  the  main  Congo  itself  the  disease 
does  not  appear  to  have  been  a complete  novelty.  According 
to  the  researches  of  Father  De  Vos,  a Belgian  missionary,  it  was 
known  traditionally  among  the  Bayanzi-Babangi  as  a disease 
once  prevalent  among  them  on  the  banks  of  the  lower  Kasai. 
It  reappeared  in  this  region  ten  to  fifteen  years  ago. 

Torday  states  that  “the  right  and  left  banks  of  the 
Congo  eastwards  as  far  as  Nouvelle  Anvers  (Bangala)  and  the 
Mubangi  as  far  as  the  highlands  near  the  Grenfell  Falls  may  be 
regarded  as  centres  of  infection  : here  the  disease  is  endemic. 
There  is  a great  deal  of  sleeping  sickness,  called  Tol\  amongst 
the  Bahuana  along  the  banks  of  the  great  Kwilu  River. 
Persons  taken  with  this  disease  are  rubbed  violently  with 
manioc  leaves.”  Among  the  Balolo,  Ngombe,  and  Bangala, 
sleeping  sickness  is  called  the  disease  from  the  sky,  “ Bokono 
na  Likolo.” 

“ When  a native,”  writes  Father  Heymans,  “attacked  by  this  illness 
or  some  other,  is  on  the  point  of  death,  he  is  made  to  sit  on  a mat 
stretched  on  the  ground,  and  his  back  is  supported  by  two  sticks,  fixed 
vertically  in  the  ground.  After  that,  the  whole  body  of  the  sick  man 
is  covered  with  “ ngola,”  a colouring  material  of  a bright  red,  extracted 
from  a tree  of  the  same  name.  That  done,  they  quietly  prepare  before 
his  eyes  the  numerous  mats  destined  to  bury  him.” 

Holman  Bentley,  writing  in  1899,  refers  to  sleeping  sickness 
as  a disease  which  appears  and  disappears  from  time  to  time. 
He  wrote  of  course  unaware  of  the  Trypanosoma  and  Glossina 
explanation,  which  was  not  to  be  made  known  until  four  years 


552  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

later,1  but  he  guesses  at  the  cause  being  a blood  parasite  and  the 
transmitting  agency  a blood-sucking  insect.  At  the  same 
time  he  discusses  the  theory  [also  advanced  by  other  authorities 
in  Uganda]  that  the  disease  may  be  conveyed  from  one  person 
to  another  by  infected  saliva.  He  instances  the  great  mortality 
from  sleeping  sickness  occurring  among  parties  of  natives  who 
eat  out  of  the  same  bowl  and  drink  from  the  same  gourd  or 
vessel  (putting  their  fingers  into  their  mouths,  and  then  into  the 
food  receptacle).  He  refers  to  the  “terrible  mortality  ” at  the 
American  Baptist  mission stationat  Banza  Manteke about  1892-3, 
attributed  to  the  administration  of  the  Communion  to  a large 
number  of  Christian  natives,  fifty  to  sixty  per  cent  of  whom 
died.  The  natives  throughout  the  Lower  Congo  believe 
in  the  contagion  of  sleeping  sickness  through  the  mouth  ; 
but  of  course  this  theory  of  infection  may  be  explained  by 
proximity  on  these  occasions  of  meals  and  festivals;  the  mur- 
derous tsetse  fly  passes  from  one  body  to  another  transmitting 
the  trypanosomes. 

Grenfell  in  the  later  years  of  his  life  advanced  the  theory 
that  the  best  foe  for  combating  the  tsetse  flies  was  a species  of 
heron.  This  bird  he  once  wounded  and  placed  in  his  boat.  He 
was  surprised  to  see  it,  even  though  scared  and  in  pain,  dili- 
gently picking  the  tsetse  flies  off  the  legs  of  the  native  boat- 
men. He  subsequently  noted  how  this  type  of  bird  (unfortu- 
nately he  gives  no  clear  indication  of  the  genus)  snapped  at  flies 
as  it  strode  along  the  river  banks.  The  small  white  herons 

1 The  history  of  sleeping-sickness  research  is  herewith  summarized  from  articles 
in  the  British  Medical  Journal , May  and  November  1903. 

Four  stages  in  the  development  of  knowledge  with  regard  to  the  relation  of 
trypanosomes  to  disease  may  be  distinguished  : (1)  The  recognition  of  a trypanosome 
in  the  blood  of  a mammal  (rat)  by  Dr.  Timothy  Lewis  in  India  in  1877  ; (2)  the  dis- 
covery in  1880  by  Griffith  Evans  in  the  Panjab  of  a trypanosome  in  the  blood  of  horses, 
mules,  and  camels  suffering  from  a disease  well  known  under  the  name  of  surra  in 
India,  and  the  demonstration  by  Sir  David  Bruce  in  1896  that  the  nagana  or  fly 
disease  of  horses,  cattle,  and  some  wild  animals  in  South-East  Africa  (Zululand)  was 
in  truth  carried  by  a biting  fly  ( Glossina ),  and  that  the  infective  agent  carried  was  a 
trypanosome,  since  appropriately  named  T.  brucei ; (3)  the  discovery  by  Forde  in  the 
blood  of  man  of  a trypanosome  fully  described  by  Dutton  (T.  gatnbiense ),  and  the 
recognition  by  (Sir  Patrick)  Manson  and  others  that  the  presence  of  the  trypanosome 
in  the  blood  in  man  caused  fever  and  certain  other  more  or  less  characteristic  symp- 
toms ; (4)  the  proof  afforded  by  the  researches  of  Dr.  Castellani  (in  Uganda)  in  1902-3 
and  of  Colonel  (Sir  David)  Bruce  and  Lady  Bruce,  Dr.  Nabarro  and  Captain  Greig, 
I.M.S.,  in  1903  that  the  trypanosome  finds  its  way  into  the  cerebro-spinal  fluid  (as 
stated  by  Dr.  Castellani)  and  that  when  it  does  so  it  produces  sleeping  sickness  ; and 
finally  (5)  that  the  parasite  is  carried  to  man  by  a biting  fly  which  is  a species  of  the 
same  genus,  Glossina , as  that  which  carries  the  trypanosome  of  nagana  to  cattle.  The 
fly  which  carries  sleeping  sickness  is  Glossina  palpalis , that  which  carries  nagana 
Glossina  tnorsitans.  They  are  so  much  alike  that  without  care  the  one  may  easily  be 
mistaken  for  the  other,  yet  the  limitation  of  sleeping  sickness  to  the  area  in  which 
Glossina  palpalis  occurs  appears  to  prove  conclusively  that  its  congener  does  not 
harbour  the  trypanosome  of  sleeping  sickness. 


NATIVE  DISEASES 


553 


(. Bubulcus ) and  the  Squacco  heron  ( Ardeola ) have  been  observed 
by  the  present  writer  in  Central  Africa  to  live  mainly  on  insects, 
and  to  frequent  the  herds  of  cattle  or  buffalo  in  order  to  pick 
the  flies  off  their  flanks  and  limbs.  If  it  could  be  established 
that  they  made  a special  attack  on  the  tsetse,  then  they  should  be 
protected  and  encouraged  till  they  swarmed  over  tropical 
Africa. 

The  disease  next  in  rank  to  trypanosomiasis  as  a depopu- 
lator  of  the  Congo  basin  (and  much  else  of  Africa)  is  smallpox , 
which,  so  far  as  the  Congo  regions  are  concerned,  is  of  relatively 
recent  introduction,  perhaps  not  having  reached  this  part  of 
Africa  till  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century,  when  it 
penetrated  inland  from  Angola.  Smallpox  is  said  to  have 
originated  in  Asia,  and  to  have  been  known  there  from  remote 
antiquity.  Procopius  and  Gregory  of  Tours  (550-600  a.d.) 
probably  make  the  earliest  references  to  its  existence  (from  a 
European  point  of  view),  and  mention  its  occurring  in  epidemic 
form  in  Arabia,  Egypt,  and  southern  Europe.  Noldeke1  in 
dealing  with  the  history  of  Persian  movements  in  Arabia, 
Abyssinia,  etc.,  states  that  in  a raid  made  by  the  Abyssinians 
against  Mekka  about  550  a.d.  the  raiders  contracted  smallpox 
there.  They  may  have  carried  it  back  with  them  into  North-East 
Africa. 

The  disease  was  really  made  prevalent  in  Europe  by  the 
Crusades,  and  was  already  established  in  England  by  the 
thirteenth  century.  By  the  eleventh  century  at  any  rate  it  had 
become  known  in  the  valley  of  the  Niger,  and  two  or  three 
hundred  years  afterwards  it  commenced  its  ravages  on  the  East 
Coast  of  Africa.  The  Portuguese  introduced  it  into  Angola 
and  the  Lower  Congo,  but  it  does  not  seem  to  have  penetrated 
the  vast  inner  basin  of  that  river  till  perhaps  a hundred  years 
ago. 

It  first  got  a hold  of  the  Lunda  Empire,  brought  thither 
of  course  by  overland  trade  with  Angola.  It  had  become 
well  established  on  the  banks  of  the  main  Congo  long 
before  the  arrival  of  Europeans  thirty  years  ago.  Arab 
caravans  carried  it  across  East  Africa  and  the  region  of 
the  Great  Lakes  to  the  Manyema  country  and  the  Lualaba- 
Congo. 

It  has  already  been  noticed  how  Grenfell’s  journey  with  the 
Portuguese  Commissioners  through  the  Lunda  kingdoms  to  the 
Kasai  in  1892-3  was  baulked  of  its  completion  by  an  epidemic 

1 Geschichte  der  Perser , etc.,  Leyden,  1879.  See  on  this  subject  Encyclopedia 
Britannicu , Vol.  XXII,  ninth  edition. 


554  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

of  smallpox  that  decimated  their  caravan.  Before  and  since 
that  period,  smallpox  frequently  ravaged  Bolobo  and  other 
mission  settlements  on  the  main  river.  In  fact,  from  the  ex- 
periences recorded  by  Grenfell  and  other  Baptist  missionaries,1 
and  those  only  too  deeply  engraved  on  the  memory  of  the 
present  writer  (who  in  earlier  days  in  East  and  South-East 
Africa  again  and  again  had  his  journeys  threatened  with  com- 
plete disaster  by  outbreaks  of  smallpox  amongst  the  native  por- 
ters), it  is  evident  that  smallpox  between  its  introduction  by  the 
Abyssinians  or  Arabs  about  thirteen  hundred  years  ago  and  the 
present  day  must  have  been  a considerable  factor  in  keeping  down 
the  population  of  Africa.  It  is  probably  not  an  exaggeration  to 
say  that  in  some  instances  small  tribal  communities  have  been 
completely  wiped  out  by  this  disease  ; but  it  would  seem  to  be 
assuming  now  a slightly  less  virulent  and  deadly  form.  Of 
course  the  negro  takes  readily  to  vaccination,  the  idea  and 
theory  of  which  appeal  strongly  to  his  therapeutics.  If  anti- 
vaccinationists in  England  desire  conviction  as  to  the  general 
beneficence  of  the  results  of  injection  of  vaccine,  they  should 
visit  those  regions  in  Africa  infested  by  smallpox,  and  watch 
the  extraordinary  immunity  which  attends  vaccination,  and  the 
way  in  which  this  disease  is  by  that  means  becoming  slowly 
extirpated. 

Dysentery , according  to  Grenfell,  is  most  prevalent — of  all 
parts  of  the  Congo  basin — in  the  north-eastern  districts, 
between  the  Rubi  River  on  the  west  and  the  Maiko  River 
on  the  east.  It  is  a very  common  disease  in  the  valley 
of  the  Aruwimi  and  in  the  Ababua  country  and  along  the 
course  of  the  upper  Wele.  In  1890  the  outbreak  of  dysentery 
on  the  lower  Aruwimi  was  so  disastrous  to  black  and  white 
alike  as  to  lead  to  temporary  abandonment  of  Belgian  posts 
along  that  river.  Basoko  station  at  the  Aruwimi  confluence 
has  had  an  unenviable  notoriety  for  this  disease.  The  Rev. 
Lawson  Forfeitt  asserts  that  dysentery  must  be  communicable 
on  the  Congo  by  other  vehicles  than  water,  to  account  for  its 
attacking  white  people  in  spite  of  their  observing  the  most 
elaborate  precautions  in  regard  to  drinking  and  cooking 
water. 

Beri-beri , a disease  described  medically  as  “a  specific 
form  of  multiple  peripheral  neuritis,”  was  introduced  into  the 
region  of  the  Lower  Congo  about  1892,  apparently  direct  from 

1 The  Baptist  missionaries  at  Yakusu  reported  that  the  Babango  (Bango-Bango) 
tribe  beyond  the  Basoko  west  of  the  Aruwimi  confluence  had  recently  been  extermi- 
nated in  a smallpox  epidemic. 


NATIVE  DISEASES 


555 

the  West  Indies,1  but  it  may  also  be  from  the  Guinea  Coast, 
where  beri-beri  had  existed  for  a longer  period,  though  equally 
derived  from  tropical  America. 

Beri-beri  is  slowly  spreading  inland  from  the  Congo  cataract 
region,  where  between  1892  and  1896  it  developed  into  a 
veritable  plague.  Originally  a disease  of  Eastern  Asia,  of 
great  antiquity,  it  found  a special  nidus  in  Japan,  say  a hundred 
years  ago.  From  the  Philippines  and  Japan  it  spread  across 
the  Pacific  to  tropical  America  and  the  West  Indies,  and 
thence  to  West  Africa.  From  Ceylon  it  travelled  westward  to 
Mauritius,  Madagascar,  and  the  East  African  coast.  It  is  now 
engaged  in  crossing  tropical  Africa  from  both  sides  of  the 
continent,  so  that  the  unfortunate  negro  may  be  afflicted  with 
another  cruel  malady. 

The  germs  of  malarial  fever  have  been  in  the  negro’s  veins 
from  a remote  period,  no  doubt,  and  this  disease  is  one  that  in 
a sense  he  has  survived  and  grown  used  to.  Nevertheless  the 
negro  in  the  Congo  basin  as  elsewhere  suffers  much  from  malarial 
fever — less  within  the  area  or  climatic  conditions  to  which  his 
tribe  has  become  habituated,  much,  however,  if  he  is  moved  to 
a part  of  Africa  to  which  he  is  not  physically  accustomed. 
These  remarks  apply  still  more  to  that  intensification  of 
malarial  poisoning  which  we  know  as  “ black- water  fever” 
(. Hcemoglobinurid ).  Ordinarily  this  last  terrible  disease  is  not 
met  with  among  negroes  residing  in  their  native  land,  but  if 
they  are  transported  rapidly,  as  by  steamer  or  rail,  to  a new 
country  (such  as  from  Uganda  across  the  Victoria  Nyanza  to 
Usukuma,  or  from  east  Tanganyika  to  the  northern  Congo), 
they  may  fall  ill  with  black-water  fever,  not,  however,  so  severely 
as  a European.  In  a general  way  Hcemoglobinuria  is  very 
rare  among  Congo  negroes,  ordinary  malarial  fever  very 
common. 

Pneumonia  is  a widespread  and  very  fatal  disease  in  all 
Central  Africa,  amongst  negroes  as  amongst  white  men. 
Pleurisy  is  recorded  by  Torday  as  a malady  in  south-west 
Congoland.  Syphilis — of  relatively  recent  introduction — is 
commoner  in  the  west,  east,  and  south  than  in  the  centre  and 
north  ; and  among  the  riverain  populations  of  the  main  Congo 
rather  than  the  tribes  removed  from  this  great  artery  of  travel. 
Syphilis  in  all  probability  was  unknown  in  these  regions  till 
the  seventeenth  to  eighteenth  centuries,  when  Europeans — 
Dutch  and  Portuguese — introduced  it  into  Angola  and  the 
Lower  Congo.  It  spread  thence  to  the  Lunda  Empire,  but 

1 By  West  Indian  negroes  engaged  for  railway  construction  work. 


556  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

obtained  no  great  hold.1  About  i860  it  had  reached  the 
Manyema  people  from  Tanganyika  in  the  train  of  the 
Zanzibar  Arabs.  About  the  same  period  the  Nyamnyam 
became  infected  from  the  Sudanese  (Arab,  Nubian)  slave- 
traders  of  the  Bahr-al-Ghazal.  But  the  disease  did  not 
appreciably  affect  the  population  till  the  European  laid  bare 
the  Congo  mysteries  in  the  last  quarter  of  the  nineteenth 
century.  Then  the  Zanzibaris  introduced  by  Stanley’s  ex- 
peditions and  the  Swahili-speaking  followers  of  the  Arabs 
between  them  spread  the  infection  of  syphilis  along  the 
banks  of  the  Lualaba-Congo,  between  the  Lukuga  confluence 
in  the  east  and  Stanley  Pool  on  the  west.  The  Congo  State 
authorities  accentuated  the  evil  by  herding  together  in  villages 
and  settlements  the  liberds — prisoners  of  war,  released  slaves, 
State  workers — in  the  manner  described  in  chapter  XX. 

In  some  districts  along  the  main  Congo  and  Kasai  the 
missionaries  consider  the  ravages  of  syphilis  so  serious  that 
in  their  opinion  the  State,  to  prevent  depopulation  or  deteriora- 
tion among  the  Congo  peoples,  should  make  and  enforce  laws 
against  adultery. 

Leprosy  and  elephantiasis 2 exist  throughout  the  Congo 
basin,  though  not  so  commonly  as  in  eastern  Equatorial 
Africa.  Bentley3  and  Whitehead4  record  in  the  western 
basin  of  the  Congo  goitre , scrofula , ophthalmia , scarlet  fever , 
“a  disease  like  measles ,”  malarial  ulcers  [from  which  the 
people  suffer  terribly,  especially  in  the  cataract  region],  yaws 
[Frambcesia ),  craw-craw  [a  terrible  itch  or  skin  disease, 
? Impetigo\  hydrocele , inflammation  of  the  bladder, piles,  rheuma- 
tism, sciatica , “ ainhum?  a Gold  Coast  disease  leading  to 
amputation  of  the  toes,  asthma,  bronchitis,  dropsy,  mumps , 
epilepsy,  hernia,  disorders  of  the  womb,  leuco derma  (a  whitening 
of  the  skin  of  hands,  lips,  etc.),  paralysis,  and  insanity : a list  to 
which  the  present  writer  can  add  whooping-cough,  which  he 
has  observed  among  the  Bateke  and  Bakongo.  So  that  what 
with  the  ills  the  white  man  has  introduced,  those  common  to  all 
mankind,  and  those  specially  evolved  on  the  African  soil,  the 
natives  of  the  Congo  have  their  full  share  of  physical  suffering. 

As  regards  their  ideas  of  medicine,  remedies,  surgery  ; they 

1 “The  Bahuana  and  the  Bayaka  attribute  the  introduction  of  syphilis  in  the 
Kwango- Kasai  territories  to  the  Ba-mbala  people,  who  brought  it  from  the  south  or 
south-east.”  (Torday.) 

2 “Elephantiasis  is  very  prevalent  in  the  fishing  villages  of  the  northern 
Congo.”  (Lord  Mountmorres.) 

3 Dictio?iary  and  Grammar  of  the  Kongo  Language:  Rev.  W.  Holman 
Bentley,  d.d. 

4 Bobangi  Grammar  and  Dictionary  : Rev.  John  Whitehead. 


NATIVE  DISEASES 


557 


commence  in  the  almost  brute  instinct  of  the  Pygmies,  who 
have  found  here  and  there  among  roots,  leaves,  seeds,  or 
animal  fats  substances  beneficial  and  healing.  The  Pygmies, 
however,  have,  little  idea  of  surgery.  The  races  above  them  in 
culture  will  combine  with  a genuine  and  ancient  knowledge  of 
drugs,  or  a treatment  of  disease  by  massage  or  sudorifics,  a 
vast  deal  of  empiricism,  “magic,”  mesmerism,  and  faith-healing. 
Some  of  these  methods  and  practices  are  described  in  chapter 
XXV,  where  they  trench  on  religious  beliefs. 

Manioc  leaves  are  much  employed  in  the  native  pharma- 
copoeia, owing  to  the  prussic  acid  they  contain.  Oddly  enough, 
though  the  castor -oil  plant  grows  over  much  of  the  Congo 
basin,  its  oil  is  never  used  as  a laxative,  only  as  a lubricant  for 
the  skin.  Charcoal,  burnt  banana-stems,  decoctions  of  the  bark 
of  many  different  trees  or  of  leaves  steeped  in  boiling  water ; 
palm  oil,  the  oils  of  certain  nuts,  such  as  Coula  edztlis , the  kola 
nut,  macerated  roots  (?  Strychnos , Cassia , etc.  etc.),  Strophan- 
thus  seed,  are  amongst  the  materia  medica  of  more  or  less 
rational  application  internally  or  externally.  Enemata  are  in- 
jected into  the  lower  bowel  by  means  of  a narrow-necked  gourd. 
Hot  fomentations  are  applied  to  swellings,  rheumatic  pains,  and 
strains.  A medicinal  hot  bath  is  usually  administered  as 
follows  : A hole  is  dug  in  the  floor  of  a house,  and  the  sides  are 
plastered  with  clay  and  lined  with  banana  leaves.  Into  this 
extempore  bath  (an  excellent  and  simple  construction)  boiling 
water  is  poured  mixed  with  medicinal  herbs.  The  idea  of  the 
“ Turkish  ” bath  is  quite  familiar  to  them.  They  keep  up  a 
roasting  fire  in  a hut  which  is  often  crammed  with  people  till 
the  patient  has  sweated  profusely.1  Massage  with  both  hands 
and  feet  is  much  in  vogue  (and  most  beneficially  applied)  for 
severe  indigestion,  rheumatism,  sprains,  lumbago,  headache, 
fever,  and  faintness.  A broken  arm  is  set  in  rude  splints  of 
bark.  For  a broken  leg,  the  man  or  woman  is  made  to  recline, 
the  leg  is  straightened,  and  splints  applied.  Earth  is  then 
heaped  over  the  whole  limb,  and  the  patient  remains  immobile 
till  the  bone  is  set.  As  sick  nurses  these  Congo  negroes  often 
display  to  each  other  much  kindness,  patience,  and  unselfishness. 

1 Vide  my  River  Congo , p.  274. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS  OR  MUTILATIONS  OF 
THE  BODY;  DRESS,  ETC. 

COMPLETE  absence  of  clothing  amongst  men  is  a 
relatively  rare  trait  among  the  Congo  races,  compared, 
that  is,  to  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa  and  Central 
Zambezia.  References  to  its  occurrence  are  noticed  here  and 
there  in  this  book  in  connection  with  the  geographical  distribu- 
tion of  peoples  and  idiosyncrasies,  and  can  be  located  through 
the  index.1  Absolute  nudity  in  the  female  is  far  more  common 
in  the  northern  half  of  the  Congo  basin.  The  nudity  of  women 
at  Bopoto  in  1886  was  complete.  In  February  1890,  though 

1 It  has  already  been  mentioned  in  this  record  that  Grenfell  found  the  natives 
above  30  N.  Lat.  on  the  lower  Mubangi  practically  nude,  men  perhaps  more  than 
women.  Nudity  in  women  occurs  far  more  frequently  in  West  Africa  than  with  men. 
A total  absence  of  clothing  or  sense  of  decency  on  the  part  of  male  negroes  is 
particularly  characteristic  of  the  Nilotic  group,  and  by  no  means  goes  in  conjunction 
with  a low  or  degraded  condition,  either  of  physical,  mental,  or  moral  development. 
Many  of  the  Nilotic  negroes  from  the  White  Nile  to  the  Zanzibar  coast-lands  are 
strongly  impregnated  with  Caucasian  (Hamitic)  blood,  but  the  almost  universal 
characteristic  of  them — at  any  rate  ten  years  ago,  before  they  came  within  the 
influence  of  European  civilization — was  for  the  men  either  to  be  entirely  nude,  or  if 
they  wore  clothing,  to  do  so  with  no  intention  of  preserving  decency.  The  Congo 
Pygmy  may  be  leading  a life  hardly  superior  to  that  of  a predatory  ape,  yet  in  this 
particular  he  is  usually  more  squeamish.  This  disregard  of  covering  even  seems  to 
have  been  a trait  in  the  Hamitic  or  Libyan  races  (who  are  Caucasian)  at  no  very 
distant  period,  or  in  the  wild  regions  of  Africa  at  the  present  day.  The  natives  of  the 
Canary  Islands  when  they  were  first  discovered  by  Spain  are  said  to  have  been  com- 
pletely nude  so  far  as  the  men  were  concerned.  The  Pagan  Gala  (who  originally 
came  from  the  Nile  valley)  and  allied  Hamitic  races  in  Eastern  Africa  have  no  feeling 
of  shame  in  regard  to  male  nudity.  In  Equatorial  Africa  this  trait  occurs  in  the 
Ba-hima  and  spreads  to  the  Bantu  people  on  the  verge  of  the  Nilotic  sphere.  The 
Bantu  races  of  the  north  end  of  Lake  Nyasa  (by  their  physique  obviously  related  in 
descent  to  the  Nile  peoples)  were  quite  nude  when  the  country  was  first  visited  by 
Europeans.  So  also  were  the  natives  of  Central  Zambezia  (Batonga,  Baila).  As 
regards  the  Zulus,  very  much  the  same  thing  was  in  vogue  not  more  than  fifty  years 
ago.  Male  nudity  occurs  along  the  northern  bank  of  the  central  Mubangi.  A 
recent  traveller,  A.  Savage  Landor,  alludes  to  the  complete  lack  of  clothing  on  the 
part  of  the  men,  but  nevertheless  reports  the  measures  they  took  to  present  them- 
selves decently  before  the  stranger,  showing  that  they  were  conscious  of  their  nudity, 
which  is  not  the  case  with  the  Nilotic  negro.  Far  away  westwards,  in  the  hinter- 
land of  the  Cameroons,  amongst  the  semi-Bantu  people,  male  nudity  of  what  may 
be  called  the  Zulu  type  still  exists.  This  is  described  by  Staff-Surgeon  Hoesemann, 
on  page  170  of  Mitteilungen  von  Forshungsreisenden , etc .,  aus  den  Deutschen  Schutz- 
gebieten , 1903.  The  custom  of  absence  of  clothing  in  the  male  was  just  dying  out 
on  the  Cross  River  and  in  the  regions  behind  Old  Calabar  twenty-five  years  ago. 

558 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS  559 

they  still  wore  no  cloth,  Grenfell  records  that  they  “wear  many 
more  strings  of  beads  round  their  necks.”  Some  tribes  of 
Pygmies  are  said  to  wear  no  clothing  of  any  description,  but 
this  has  not  characterized  those  northern  sections  of  the  dwarf 
peoples  carefully  described  by  competent  observers,  whereof 
the  men  at  least  conceal  the  pudenda  with  a small  piece  of 
bark  cloth.  Still,  premising  that  the  actual  claims  of  decency 
are  more  nicely  respected  among  even  the  least  clad  of  Congo 
negroes  than  they  are  by  the  shameless  Nilotes  and  Masai,  it 
must  be  admitted  that  a bare,  and  usually  glistening,  chocolate- 


289.  BOPOTO  WOMEN  DECORATED  WITH  BEADS  AND  COLOURED  CLAY 
FOR  A CEREMONIAL  PROCESSION 


brown  skin  is  (or  was)  the  first  feature  in  the  aspect  of  the 
natives  of  the  inner  Congo  basin  that  used  to  impress  the 
explorer  arriving  at  Stanley  Pool  from  the  semi-civilized 
regions  of  the  west  (where  print  goods,  American  calico,  and 
store  clothes  have  long  been  in  use).  In  the  eastern  part  of  the 
Congo  basin  the  Arabs  have  introduced  the  graceful,  ample 
clothing  of  Zanzibar. 

In  the  north  (Mubangi-Wele  basin)  the  civilization  of  the 
Egyptian  Sudan  has  penetrated,  bringing  with  it  Turkish 
breeches  for  the  men  and  ample  draperies  for  the  women. 

But  in  the  vast  centre,  from  Stanley  Pool  to  Stanley  Falls 
and  from  the  Bantu  borderline  beyond  the  northern  Congo  to 


560  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  Lunda  plateaux  and  the  Zambezi  watershed,  the  people  are 
naked ; and  like  most  primitive  races  in  that  condition  the 
Congo  negro  has  sought  to  decorate  his  skin  by  designs  in 
relief  or  in  colour — to  a greater  extent  perhaps  than  anywhere 
else  in  Africa.  Between  Stanley  Pool  and  the  Albertine  Rift 
valley,  most  of  the  naked  tribes  colour  their  bodies  all  over  with 
a crimson  paste  made  of  triturated  wood  and  palm  oil  [tukula 
or  nkula  of  the  Bakongo,  ngola  of  the  Babangi,  Bangala,  and 
Bapoto,  kakola  of  the  Baluba,  liboi  of  the  Ngombe,  mboli  of 
the  Basoko,  and  sele  of  the  lower  Lomami).  This  intensely 


290.  A DANCING  WOMAN  AND  HER  ATTENDANTS  OF  THE  NORTHERN 
NGOMBE  PEOPLE 


crimson  cosmetic  is  derived  from  the  rotted,  triturated  bark  of 
a species  of  Baphia  (camwood),  a pretty  little  tree  with  dark 
glossy  leaves  and  yellow-centred  white  bean-flowers,1  called 
Eseu  in  Lobobangi. 

Away  to  the  south,  in  the  countries  where  the  Baphia 
ceases  to  grow  and  the  oil-palm  is  scarce,  the  red  pigment  is 
made  from  iron  rust  or  from  the  intensely  red  clay  of  the  decom- 
posed granite,  and  is  mixed  and  applied  with  mutton  fat.2  But 

1 Some  writers  attribute  the  red  dye  in  the  western  Congo  to  the  seedpods  of 
Bixia  orellana  (an  American  introduced  tree — “ Arnatto”)  or  to  the  bark  of  Pterocarpus 
tinctorius.  Pterocarpus  is  certainly  used  in  the  Tanganyika  region. 

2 On  one  occasion  Grenfell  picked  up  what  seemed  to  be  an  aerolite  on  the 
Bangala  shore  of  the  Upper  Congo  and  sent  it  home  for  examination.  Professor 
Rupert  Jones  reported  on  it  as  follows  : “ It  is  an  ochre  box  nearly  three  inches  in 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


56i 

this  crude  “red  lead”  colour  is  hideous  beside  the  beautiful 
carmine  of  the  northern  Congo.  It  is  really  a pleasure  to  ones 
colour-sense  to  behold  a throng  of  well-built  Ngombe  or 
Bayanzi  men  and  women,  nearly  naked  and  painted  a dull,  dry 
crimson  (deep  rose  colour)  from  head  to  foot,  emerging  from  the 
dark  forest  background  on  to  a river  shore  of  golden  sand  above 
a reflected  sky  of  deep  grey-blue. 

A white  pigment  is  usually  made  from  pipeclay  (kaolin)  or 
ashes  ; yellow  from  clay  or  from  the  dye  of  certain  saps  or 
seeds  ; blue-grey  and  mauve  from  other  kinds  of  wood  ash.  or 
from  clay,  indigo,  or  the  sap  of  various  plants ; soot  and 
charcoal  are  both  used  for  black  or  dark  grey.  The  paintings 
of  the  body  for  magical  or  initiation  ceremonies  or  for  marriage 
(or  again,  mourning)  are  described  in  another  chapter.  There 
are  also  many  allusions  in  previous  passages  quoted  from 
Grenfell’s  diary  as  to  the  painted  people  of  the  Upper  Congo, 
Lulongo,  and  Lomami.  Among  these  Ngombe,  Mongo,  and 
Lokele  (Topoke)  variegated  colouring  is  the  privilege  of  the 
men  : the  women  seldom  do  more  than  plaster  the  whole  body 
with  the  powdered,  crimson  camwood.1 

diameter,  and  has  a round  concretion  of  ferruginous  sandstone,  brown  outside,  and 
rough,  with  small  lumps,  some  of  which  retain  a position  due  to  the  original  stratifica- 
tion of  the  sandstone  in  which  the  concretion  was  found.  The  interior  is  dark  red  for 
the  outside  and  gradually  of  a paler  red  towards  the  central  cavity  (about  three-quarters 
of  an  inch  wide),  once  occupied  by  a small  ball  of  red  ochre.  This  specimen  resembles 
the  natural  ‘ paint  pots  ’ in  the  Karoo  sandstone  of  South  Africa  ; but  the  walls  of  the 
latter  are  usually  thinner.  The  Bushmen  frequently  used  them  (if  they  do  not  now), 
when  broken  open,  with  the  addition  of  some  moisture  to  the  contents,  as  pigments  for 
body  ornamentation,  and  anciently  for  painting  the  figures  on  the  walls  of  caves,  ob- 
taining from  them  certain  tints,  such  as  the  purple  for  a human  form  or  for  other 
objects.” 

1 “At  Mwembe,”  writes  Grenfell  in  1885  (on  the  Juapa),  “two  hundred  armed 
men  paraded  up  and  down  rubbing  ashes  and  soot  on  their  bodies.  Several  wanted 
to  shoot,  but  these  rash  persons  were  always  restrained  by  the  older  men.  . . . Beyond 
Eyombe,  three  hundred  men  painted  red,  black,  and  white  danced,  shooting  arrows.” 
These  were  probably  Mongo  people,  who  often  use  grey  or  white  as  a “war”  colour. 
The  Ikasa  and  Yalundi  of  the  south  bank  of  the  northern  Congo  (allied  to  both 
Ngombe  and  Mongo)  paint  the  face  with  some  indigo  dye  (?  Randia ) in  dots  and 
geometrical  figures.  The  body  is  covered  with  a network  of  indigo  lines.  The 
Basoko  use  white  as  a war  colour.  Some  of  the  northern  Babati  clans  (Wele  River) 
paint  the  body  all  over  with  grey  clay,  then  paint  on  top  of  this  indigo  spots  and 
stripes  with  Randia  sap.  This  is  very  effective.  Some  of  the  southern  Ngojnbe  paint 
the  body  red  and  the  face  black  (with  soot).  The  Azande,  besides  striping  their  brown 
skins  with  Randia  juice,  paint  themselves  red  for  war,  and  blacken  their  foreheads  with 
charcoal  and  oil.  The  Bangala  paint  themselves  red  and  black  as  a protection  against 
evil  spirits.  The  Bakuba  of  Central  Congoland  apply  red  camwood  powder  all  over 
the  body,  but  in  war-time  or  at  great  feasts  paint  the  brows  with  a great  black  streak 
and  the  eyes  with  white  circles.  The  Babwende  of  the  northern  cataract  Congo  use 
a great  quantity  of  red  and  white  in  colouring  their  bodies.  The  red  is  the  usual 
camwood  paste  ( nkula ),  and  is  applied  to  the  body  and  even  to  the  hair.  The  white 
( pembe ) is  nothing  else  but  kaolin,  found  in  small  quantities  all  over  the  district.  It  is 
used  to  draw  thin  lines  under  the  eyes  or  on  the  forehead.  But  it  is  above  all  ap- 
plied to  the  limbs  as  a curative  dressing.  [These  notes  are  derived  from  Grenfell, 
Father  Geens,  and  the  compilation  of  Mr.  T.  A.  Joyce.] 

II. — F 


562  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  Ngombe  men  sometimes  carry  out  the  most  elaborate 
decorations  in  four  colours.  These  consist  usually  of  parallel 
lines  of  blue-grey,  yellow,  red,  and  white,  running  along  the  two 
arms  and  meeting  over  the  shoulders  in  curved  scrolls  almost 
exactly  like  the  military  braiding  on  a Zouave’s  jacket.  Simi- 
larly the  chest,  abdomen,  and  lower  limbs  are  painted  with 
these  parallel  lines  of  four  colours.  Occasionally,  starting  from  the 
navel  as  a kind  of  bull’s-eye,  the  stomach  is  painted  in  concentric 
rings  like  a target ; with  smaller  circles  on  each  breast.  One 
of  the  two  eyes  will  be  painted  with  a circular  white  patch,  and 
the  cheeks,  forehead,  and  chin  be  decorated  with  minute  and 
sometimes  beautiful  designs  in  lines  of  coloured  pigment  applied 
very  carefully  and  accurately  by  a feather.1 

The  Alunda  of  Southern  Congoland  paint  the  whole  body 
with  white  kaolin  (this  is  a frequent  practice  among  the  women) 
or  decorate  their  brown  skins  with  white  squares,  dots,  and 
crosses. 

These  body  paintings  extend  northwards  to  the  Ababna- 
Babciti  of  the  Wele  district,  who  (in  both  sexes)  decorate  their 
bodies  with  crimson  camwood,  white  clay,  and  charcoal  paste. 

The  Manbettu  women  paint  the  whole  body  in  diverse 
figures  with  the  black  juice  of  the  Randia  malleifera.  The 
body  is  sometimes  striped  like  a zebra,  sometimes  covered  with 
irregular  spots.  After  wearing  these  patterns  for  a few  days 
they  are  washed  off  and  replaced  by  others. 

Body  painting  does  not  occur  (or  has  not  been  recorded) 
amongst  the  Pygmies.  Except  in  regard  to  certain  marriage, 
burial,  and  fetishistic  customs,  it  has  almost  entirely  ceased 
amongst  the  more  clothed  peoples  of  the  south,  east,  west,  and 
north. 

In  the  centre  of  the  Congo  basin  the  natives  (almost  more 
than  any  other  African  peoples)  cover  their  faces  and  bodies 
with  scars — usually  raised  lumps  of  smooth  skin,  sometimes 
merely  patches  or  dots  not  in  relief,  but  of  different  surface 
texture  to  the  unscarred  epidermis.  This  is  incorrectly  called 
“tatuing,”  but  the  word  tatu  (spelt  in  old  English  tattoo), 

1 Torday  writes  in  connection  with  his  studies  of  the  Bambala  people  of  the 
Kwilu  : “ The  ornamentation  of  his  person  is  the  chief  occupation  of  the  southern 
Mo-mbala  when  at  home  ; his  paint  is  renewed  twice  or  thrice  a day,  and  his  face 
ornamented  with  stripes  of  red,  brown,  orange,  and  violet ; the  pattern  is  usually  as 
follows  : a horizontal  stripe  on  the  forehead,  a stripe  from  each  ear  to  the  tip  of  the 
nose,  and  again  from  each  ear  to  the  point  of  the  chin.  Personal  beauty  is  an  attribute 
which  is  highly  valued  ; it  is  considered  a compliment  to  speak  of  a guest  as  young 
and  handsome,  and  even  war  has  been  known  to  result  when  one  chief  has  boasted 
that  his  appearance  was  superior  to  that  of  another.5’ 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


563 

derived  from  the  Tahitian  tatau  or  tatu,  should  really  be  re- 
served for  the  art  of  puncturing  the  skin  and  thus  introducing  a 
pigment  under  the  epidermis.  The  designs  on  an  African  skin 
obtained  by  inflicting  a scar  should  be  described  as  cicatrization.1 

Actual  tatuing  is  rare  among  the  Congo  negroes.  A clumsy 
form  of  it  ( nsamba ) appears  to  be  practised  by  the  Bakongo 
and  Eshikongo.  A special  artist,  the  nganga  mpwata , makes 
a trade  of  this  operation.  It  is  performed  on  a child  as  soon  as 
it  is  weaned  and  can  walk.  The  child  is  placed  on  its  back  on 
the  ground,  and  the  medicine-man,  using  a sharp  reed-splinter 
as  a needle,  punctures  the  pinched-up  skin  in  the  places  (chest, 
stomach,  abdomen)  where  he  wishes  to  tatu  the  tribal  or  clan 
marks.  The  colouring  matter  is  calcined  wood  ash,  into  which 
the  needle  is  dipped.  This  operation  results  in  slightly  raised 
bluish  scars. 

The  Manbettu  may  be  slightly  tatued  on  the  body,  but 
actually  the  medley  of  fantastic  or  beautiful  designs  in  blue- 
black  with  which  their  trunk  and  limbs  are  sometimes  covered 
is  more  often  painted  thereon  (not  pricked)  with  the  rather 
mordant  inky  sap  of  the  Randia , already  mentioned.  The 
Nyamnyam  do  the  same  where  Moslem  civilization  has  not 
introduced  ample  clothing.  The  Batetela  both  paint  and  tatu 
themselves  with  blue  spots,  using  probably  the  Randia  dye. 
Torday  thinks  the  Baluba  follow  the  same  practice,  or  they 
may  tatu  their  arms  with  delicate  patterns  dyed  with  decayed 
rubber  latex.  Carvalho  states  that  the  southern  and  south- 
western populations  of  the  Congo  basin  tatu  their  bodies  and 
sometimes  cheeks  and  temples  by  means  of  imported  needles. 
The  needle  is  dipped  into  the  juice  of  some  tree,  possibly  a 
gardenia.2 

The  “Saturn  mark”  so  often  referred  to  by  Grenfell  may 
also  be  a tatuing  with  blue.  It  was  a dot  enclosed  by  a small 
circle,  which  again  is  enclosed  by  a larger  circle  about  1 \ inches 
in  diameter.  He  noticed  this  among  the  populations  of  the 
lower  Kasai,  the  Mfini,  Lake  Leopold,  and  also  the  Busira- 
Juapa.  It  was  placed  on  the  temples. 

1 It  is  a remarkable  fact  that  cicatrization  as  a method  of  skin  adornment  only 
occurs  (1)  amongst  African  negroes  mainly  of  the  Forest  and  mixed  Bantu  types  and 
allied  negroes  of  the  Central  Sudan  and  Guinea  coast-lands ; (2)  amongst  the 
Australian  aborigines  ; (3)  the  negroid  populations  of  Papua  and  Melanesia ; and  (4) 
the  Negritoes  of  the  Andaman  Islands.  Bushmen  apparently  do  not  mark  the  skin. 
Hottentots  practise  a limited  amount  of  real  tatuing  of  a North-East  or  East  African 
type.  Savage  or  semi-civilized  peoples  of  Asia,  America,  Cis-Saharan  Africa,  Arabia, 
and  Madagascar  (besides  much  of  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa)  tatu,  namely,  ornament 
the  skin  with  punctured  designs  into  which  colouring  matter  is  conveyed. 

2 Torday  states  that  it  is  a rubber  vine  (Apocynaceous  shrub). 


564  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Tatuing  is  practised  (rarely)  amongst  the  Bahuana . The 
design  is  usually  simple,  consisting  of  a small  square  on  the 
arm.  The  instrument  used  is  composed  of  three  or  four  needles, 
and  the  pigment  inserted  is  decayed  rubber. 

The  Bakongo  and  Eshikongo  still  use  a kind  of  scar  orna- 
mentation, but  not  in  the  form  of  peloids  or  raised  weals  : merely 
little  flat  scars  (possibly  burns)  which  form  patches  of  satiny 
surface.  Infants  when  a few  months  old — apparently  as  some 
protection  against  evil  spirits — are  marked  with  about  fifty  tiny 
incisions  on  the  temples  and  along  the  arms.  These  leave  minute 
scars  that  are  still  visible  in  the  adult.  Amone  the  Basundi 
and  Babwende  of  the  Cataract  region  incisions  are  made  on  the 
back,  chest,  and  belly  in  the  shape  of  diamonds  or  a conven- 
tional design  of  a crocodile  (one  broad  perpendicular  line 
crossed  by  two  short  lines).  They  also  raise  hideous  lumps  of 
scarred  skin  (like  irregular  burns)  on  the  breast-bone  and  on 
the  deltoid  muscle  of  the  shoulder,  and  sometimes  have  a 
diamond-shaped  blob  on  the  forehead.  Entering  Congoland 
from  the  west,  the  Bateke  of  Stanley  Pool  are  the  first  people 
to  appear  with  striking  scar-marks  on  the  face.  Their  cheeks 
are  symmetrically  streaked  from  near  the  eyes  almost  to  the 
jaw  by  five  or  six  parallel  slits.  There  are  sometimes  also 
peloids  on  the  temples. 

Th eBamfunu  follow  the  Bateke  custom,  but  the  face  striations 
are  more  oblique.  The  Bayaka  of  the  lower  Kwango  appar- 
ently do  not  cicatrize  or  tatu.  The  Baboma  (or  Babuma)  of  the 
Kwa-Kasai  incise  the  cheeks  and  forehead  with  a multitude  of 
small  lines  close  together,  resembling  wrinkles,  and  giving  the 
face  a very  old  appearance.  They  decorate  the  body  also  with 
peloids  (raised  lumps  of  skin). 

Cicatrization  is  much  developed  among  the  Bangala , Bapoto , 
and  Ngombe . They  often  carve  the  skin  of  the  temples  into  a 
design  like  a palm  frond  or  a fleur-de-lis,  and  decorate  the 
shoulders  with  an  oval  of  interlaced  bands.  These  designs, 
sometimes  in  high  relief,  are  very  far  from  ugly.  Indeed,  a 
well  built,  well  “carved”  Ngombe  man  or  woman  suggests 
great  possibilities  in  artistic  development.  On  the  Bangala 
forehead  there  are  raised  scars  from  the  root  of  the  nose  to  the 
edge  of  the  head  hair.  Or  the  Bapoto  and  Ngombe  will  cut 
circular  ridges  more  or  less  following  in  parallel  lines  the  arches 
of  the  eyebrows,  orbits  of  the  eyes,  and  circle  of  the  mouth. 
The  upper  lip  is  sometimes  scored  with  parallel  horizontal  cuts 
sufficiently  deep  for  them  to  be  able,  as  a coquettish  attraction, 
to  insert  coloured  feathers  into  these  slits.  Some  European 


LIBRARY 
OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS  567 


explorers  declare  that  the  general  effect  of  a scarred,  lined,  and 
carved  Bangala  face  is  attractive  to  the  eye. 

The  Banorala  cicatrization  of  the  chest  and  abdomen  is  illus- 


the  present  writers  book  on  The  River  Congo , 


alonor 

<3 


trated  in 
page  420. 

The  Bapoto,  Buja,  Bwela , Akula  people  behind  or 
the  northern  bank  of  the  Upper  Congo,  or  their  relatives  on 
the  opposite  bank,  Bakatula,  Bakinga,  Linkasa,  Yalundi,  and 
Malunja,  all  known 
generically  as  Ngombe , 
have  two  kinds  of  racial 
tatuines 

O 


the 


(1)  Down 

middle  of  forehead  a ver- 
tical line  of  incisions  pro- 
ducing large  blobs  or 
lumps  far  apart  from  each 
other;  in  semicircles 
above  the  eyebrows 
similar  peloids  which  are 
continued  in  lines  starting 
from  the  temples  and 
coming  down  across  the 
cheeks  to  the  chin.  “A 
very  characteristic  and 
heroic  marking  of  a peo- 
ple who  are  brave,  intelli- 
gent, enterprising  (and 
friendly  towards  the 
whites),”  writes  a Belgian 
official.  (2)  The  face  is 
covered  with  numerous 
lines  of  “pimples”  placed 
close  together.  The  arms, 
chest,  abdomen,  and 
thighs  are  also  marked  with  varied 

o 


292. 


A NATIVE  OF  BOPOTO,  SHOWING 
CICATRIZATION  OF  FACE 


designs 


in  small  raised 


points. 

The  Babangi of  the  main  river  make  vertical  scars  down  the 
centre  of  the  forehead,  or  else  a row  or  band  of  perpendicular 
peloids  right  across  the  brows  from  temple  to  temple. 

The  Eastei'n  Bayanzi  sometimes  substitute  for  perpendicular 
slits  in  these  bands  small  crosses.  On  some  foreheads  there  is 
the  horizontal  band  across  the  brows  from  temple  to  temple,  as 
well  as  the  vertical  band  from  the  hair  down  to  the  root  of  the 
nose,  and  even  along  the  bridge  of  the  nose  to  its  tip.  The 


568  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

men  are  sometimes  scarred  on  the  chest  and  abdomen,  but  not 
as  much  so  as  the  women,  who  are  occasionally  embroidered 
with  these  raised  lumps  from  the  throat  to  the  end  of  the  abdo- 
men, with  lateral  scrolls  winding  round  the  thighs. 

Mongo  and  Lolo  (Balolo). — These  once  crowded  populations 
of  the  great  Crown  Domain  [the  basins  of  the  Ruki-Juapa, 
Ikelemba,  Maringa,  and  Lopori]  practise  the  most  exaggerated 
forms  of  scar-tatuing.  An  elliptic  blister  is  often  created  in 
the  middle  of  the  brow  ; on  the  upper  part  of  the  nose  between 
the  eyes  there  is  a single  or  double  fleshy  excrescence  ; on  the 
temples  a series  of  concentric  ellipses  forming  a large  blister. 
Often,  particularly  among  freemen,  cicatrization  extends  along 
the  bridge  of  the  nose  in  a series  of  small  ridges.  This  tatuing 
is  of  unqualified  ugliness. 

The  Mongo  women  have  their  chins  hideously  slashed  and 
deformed,  showing  repulsive  excrescences. 

The  Balolo  women  of  the  more  aristocratic  caste,  who  are 
very  much  admired,  have  a blister  on  their  ears,  but  their  brows 
are  unmarked.  The  chin  is  scarred  with  several  parallel  cres- 
cents, to  which  the  eye  rapidly  accustoms  itself.1  On  the  lower 
Ruki  a fan-palm  frond  is  over  the  forehead,  its  stalk  starting  on 
the  bridge  of  the  nose.  The  body  is  much  decorated  with 
designs  in  lozenges,  dots,  and  lines.  On  the  Busira  River  the 
Mongo  people  exhibit  very  complex  markings  on  the  face  ; on 
the  upper  part  of  the  nose  there  are  three  parallel  lines  of  small 
excrescences.  From  one  temple  to  the  other  there  is  a double 
line  of  close  incisions  crossing  the  cheeks  and  nose. 

On  the  nose  and  over  the  brow  of  these  women  there 
spreads  a veritable  peacock’s  tail  of  dots  and  streaks. 

“On  the  upper  Juapa  River,”  writes  Grenfell,  “the  cicatrices  on 
the  faces  of  the  Ndolo  or  Balolo  people  consist  of  three  parallel  cuts, 
each  from  the  edge  of  the  cheek-bone  to  the  vicinity  of  the  lower  jaw 
on  the  side  of  the  face,  and  a single  row  of  bean-shaped  cicatrices  down 
the  centre  of  the  forehead.” 

“ On  the  upper  Lulongo  [Maringa]  women  have  lumps  the  size  of 
large  beans  regularly  spaced  over  the  abdomen,  back,  and  hips.” 

In  the  south-west,  the  Badinga  and  Bangodi  of  the  lower 
Kasai  and  the  Kancha  rivers  have  three  groups  of  small  lumps 
between  the  ear  and  the  hair,  over  the  temple,  and  are  orna- 
mented with  many  small  scars  on  the  abdomen.  The  A-lunda , 

1 Grenfell  writes  of  these  Balolo  women  : “ The  blisters  or  lumps  of  skin  on  the 
temples  (close  to  the  ear)  and  at  the  root  of  the  nose  are  often  the  size  of  pigeons’ 
eggs.  These  women  are  scarred  all  over  the  body.” 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


569 

besides  the  cicatrizing  already  described,  sometimes  scar  their 
foreheads  and  stomachs.  The  Bakuba  mark  the  abdomen  with 


293-  A MUYANZI  (drawn  by  Sir  Harry  Johnston  at  Bolobo  in  1883):  TO  SHOW  PATTERN 
OF  CICATRIZATION  ON  BODY  AND  STYLE  OF  HAIR-DRESSING 

a pattern  of  small  lumps,  and  their  temples  with  three  groups 
of  three  stars  each — nine  on  each  temple.1 

1 Their  attachment  in  this  and  other  details  to  the  number  nine  recalls  a similar 
trait  in  the  Bahima  of  Uganda- Unyoro.  Vide  author’s  Uganda  Protectorate. 


570  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  wild  populations  of  the  upper  Sankuru,  Lualaba, 
Lufira,  and  the  regions  contiguous  to  British  Central  Africa 
practise  cicatrization  on  the  body  excessively — usually,  however, 
in  flat  scars  like  burns.  This  practice  does  not  seem  to  prevail 
much  within  the  western  basin  of  the  Zambezi,  but  crosses  the 
province  of  North-Eastern  Rhodesia  into  British  and  German 
Nyasaland  and  Portuguese  East  Africa,  extending  southwards 
to  Swaziland. 

The  Batetelci,  Bakusu , and  (?)  Manyema  do  not  practise  cica- 
trization. The  water-loving  Bagenya  raise  a few  large  peloids 
on  the  shoulder,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  illustration  on  p.  521. 

The  Forest  tribes  (Lokele,  Turumbu,  Babali,  etc.)  of  the 
north-east  Conpro  basin  neglect  these  adornments,  though  there 
are  both  tribal  and  individual  exceptions.  The  Basoko  of  the 
lower  Aruwimi  cicatrize  the  forehead,  lips,  and  chin.  The 
Mabenja  and  Bajande  between  the  Aruwimi  and  the  Lulu  mark 
the  forehead,  just  above  the  left  eyebrow,  with  four  concentric 
circles  of  points,  or  else  smaller  concentric  circles  above  each 
eyebrow,  or  lines  and  dots. 

The  Ababua  or  Babaii  mark  their  foreheads  somewhat 
similarly  with  many  little  lines  and  dots  ; 1 the  Mabode  scar  the 
back  and  chest  ; the  Mahbettu  women  make  patterns  of  scars 
round  the  shoulders  and  on  the  stomach,  and  the  Azctnde  deco- 
rate the  forehead  and  temples  with  three  or  four  squares  of  dots 
or  points  (very  near  tatuing)  and  do  the  same  on  the  chest. 

The  Azande  (Nyamnyam)  also  mark  with  tatuing  or  with 
scars  a kind  of  Maltese  cross  over  the  stomach,  beginning  at  the 
breast-bone : a pattern  similar  to  that  so  often  seen  woven  in 
their  basket-work  shields. 

The  Yakoma  ( Sango ) of  the  Mubangi-Wele  (Mbomu  con- 
fluence) have  as  their  tribal  mark  a row  of  peloids  down  the 
centre  of  the  forehead.  Most  of  the  other  populations  south  of 
the  Mubangi  stream  practise  some  form  of  cicatrization. 2 The 


1 Cicatrization  among  the  Ababua  is  practised,  and  is  principally  applied  to  the 
breast  and  abdomen.  If,  as  stated,  the  Ababua  originally  formed  one  tribe,  it  is  prob- 
able that  in  former  times  the  tribal  mark  in  general  use  was  a lateral  band  on  the 
forehead,  composed  of  four  or  five  lines  of  punctures,  sloping  slightly  towards  the  root 
of  the  nose.  (Professor  Halkin  : Quelques  Peuplades  de  FUele , etc.) 

2 Writing  of  the  populations  along  the  northern  Mubangi  (Sango  group)  Lord 
Mountmorres  says:  “This  tattooing  is  remarkable  for  the  beauty  of  the  designs  at 
which  they  have  arrived.  Many  of  them  resemble  very  closely  conventional  designs 
taught  in  art  schools  in  this  country,  and  amongst  others  I came  across  was  the 
regular  fleur-de-lis  of  France  enclosed  in  an  empire  framework.  How  it  got  there  I 
do  not  know  ; it  may  have  been  brought  in  some  cutting  of  a paper  which  somehow 
reached  them,  but  it  was  so  European  that  I do  not  believe  it  could  have  originated 
in  the  locality.  It  was  exactly  the  same  design  as  on  the  woman’s  arm  in  The  Three 
Musketeers .” 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


57i 


Bonjo  along  the  lower  Mubangi  cicatrize  the  whole  of  the  body. 
The  Banza  mark  their  faces  with  a line  of  dots  in  relief,  start- 
ing from  one  ear  to  the  other  and  passing  below  the  eyes  ; or  a 
triple  vertical  row  of  dots  on  the  forehead  ; or  else  lines  of  dots 
which  describe  wide  circles  round  the  eyes  and  meet  in  the 
middle  of  the  forehead,  dividing  the  upper  half  of  the  face  into 
two  distinct  spheres. 

Lord  Mountmorres,  in  a paper  published  by  the  Society  of 
Arts  (May  12  1905),  states  that  these  raised  scars  or  peloids 
are  produced  in  the  following  manner  : — 

“ The  skin  is  cut,  turned  back,  and  filled  with  a fibre  extracted  from 
between  the  bark  and  the  main  wood  of  a particular  tree,  which  is 
pounded  and  dried  ; it  is  put  into  the  wound,  and  the  wound  is  then 
sewn  up  over  it.  In  course  of  time  it  suppurates,  a little  abscess  forms, 
the  flesh  begins  to  hang  down,  and  this  wadding  from  inside  forces  its 
way  out  little  by  little.  In  one  village  at  which  I stopped  on  my  way 
up-river,  the  medicine  man,  the  tattooer,  was  then  paying  his  annual  or 
semi-annual  visit,  and  all  the  boys  in  the  place  were  undergoing  tattoo- 
age.  You  can  understand  that  the  noise  most  of  them  made  over  it  was 
considerable,  though  a large  number  of  them  bore  the  operation  with 
extraordinary  fortitude.  This  man,  with  an  ordinary  native  knife, 
would  cut  three  great  gashes  in  the  forehead  ; he  would  then  put  in  the 
wadding,  and  draw  the  flesh  over  it,  and  with  two  bits  of  tendrils  of 
creepers  tie  up  the  wound.  It  was  then  left  alone;  I suppose  the 
patients  would  probably  pass  many  weeks  with  these  terrible  festering 
sores  on  the  face.  In  some  places  the  natives  are  simply  tattooed  all 
over ; the  whole  of  the  face  and  the  body  is  one  mass  of  tattooage.” 

Mutilations  of  the  teeth  seem  to  be  quite  as  much  in  vogue 
in  the  Congo  basin  as  they  are  in  that  of  the  Zambezi  or  in  East 
Africa.  Among  the  Bakongo  the  two  middle  upper  and  lower 
incisors  are  sharpened  to  points  or  are  slightly  scooped  in  a 
semicircle.  On  the  Luango  (Kakongo)  coast  the  men  still  file 
their  upper  front  teeth  in  semicircles,  so  as  to  reduce  the  first 
and  second  incisors  and  canine  on  each  side  to  sharp  points. 
Most  of  the  riverain  tribes  of  the  north , south , and  east 
leave  their  teeth  alone.  But  a great  many  of  the  peoples  of 
the  centre  and  north-east  file  all  the  front  teeth  in  both  jaws  to 
sharp  points.  This  is  particularly  characteristic  of  the  Ngombe 1 
and  Bangala ; and  of  the  Basongomeno  between  the  Kasai- 
Sankuru  and  the  Lukenye,  whose  very  name  means  “ they 
sharpen  teeth.”  Some  of  the  Bakusu , Basonge  (. Bakuba ),  and 
Manyema  adopt  the  same  practice,  as  do  many  of  the  Aruwimi 
tribes  ; and  such  of  the  Pygmy  people  as  are  in  close  contact 

1 “The  Rubi  people  (Bondonga)  do  not  file  their  teeth”  (Grenfell).  The  non- 
Bantu  Bondonga  inhabit  the  Rubi  district  behind  the  northern  Ngombe. 


572  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

with  them.  The  Eastern  Manyema  chip  a diagonal  space 
between  the  two  middle  upper  incisors. 

Sharpening  the  front  teeth  to  a point  coincides,  to  a certain 
extent,  with  the  practice  of  cannibalism,  but  not  invariably. 
The  filing  is  sometimes  done  in  the  upper  jaw  alone,  more  often 
in  both  jaws,  and  the  filing  is  performed  on  the  four  incisors  and 
two  canines,  so  that  all  these  six  teeth  are  reduced  to  sharp 
spikes.  A good  illustration  of  this  in  North  Congo  Ngombe 
people  is  given  on  page  555  in  my  Uganda  book. 

I have  not  encountered  records  of  many  tribes  from  the 
central  Congo  basin  that  actually  remove  or  knock  out  teeth  [a 
practice  which  is  so  common  elsewhere  in  Guinea  or  in  East 
and  South-Central  Africa].  But  the  Babira  in  the  extreme 
north-east  on  the  edofe  of  the  Ituri  forest  knock  out  the  lower 
incisor  teeth,  borrowing  the  custom  apparently  from  the  Nilotic 
Aluru.  Some  of  the  southern  Ngombe  or  Malunja  (south  bank 
of  the  northern  Congo)  extract  the  two  central  upper  incisors. 
The  Bayaka , who  ordinarily  file  their  teeth  to  sharp  points, 
occasionally  knock  out  the  central  incisors  instead,  and  in  con- 
sequence retire  to  the  bush  for  ten  days  to  nurse  the  severe 
neuralgia  that  results.  Grenfell  writes:  “The  Baloi  of  the 
lower  Mubangi  have  a very  distinctive  appearance  on  account 
of  the  four  front  teeth  having  been  pulled  out.  For  this  or 
some  other  reason  they  are  averse  to  opening  the  mouth.” 

The  A-lunda  women  chip  the  two  middle  upper  incisors  into 
a semicircle  and  remove  the  two  lower  incisors  altogether. 

With  regard  to  the  ears , the  lobe  of  the  ear  is  pierced 
amongst  many  tribes.  Those  in  the  western  regions  (Babwende, 
Bakongo)  may  have  adopted  the  practice  in  imitation  of  Euro- 
peans, and  merely  wear  one  or  more  slender  ear-rings,  usually 
of  brass.  [The  Babwende  of  the  north  bank  of  the  cataract 
Congo  pierce  the  septum  of  the  nose  and  thrust  straw  through 
it,  or  wear  a nose-ring  of  beads.]  But  on  the  western  and 
upper  Mubangi,1  along  the  Wele,  and  on  the  Lomami  the  lobe 
of  the  ear  is  so  enlarged  by  the  objects  that  are  gradually  thrust 
through  it  that  some  of  these  peoples  are  described  by  Grenfell 
as  “the  rope-eared  folk,”  as  they  often  remove  the  discs  and 
allow  the  long,  leather-like  rings  of  the  ear-lobe  to  hang  loose, 
nearly  touching  the  shoulder.  The  Bakango  (allied  to  the 

1 Grenfell  and  Stapleton  describe  the  Mftombo  or  Banza  people  of  the  east  bank 
of  the  lower  Mubangi  as  having  the  lobe  of  the  ear  distended  and  deformed  by  the 
weight  of  the  pieces  of  copper  which  take  the  place  of  ear-rings.  The  Banza  also  wear 
nose-rings  of  copper,  the  women  especially. 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


573 

Babati)  of  the  Mubangi-Wele  cut  out  the  greater  part  of 
the  cartilage  of  the  outer  ear,  and  stretch  the  rim  like  a rubber 
tyre  on  a tin  hoop  two  inches  in  diameter.  With  the  more 
eastern  tribes  of  the  Ababua  or  Babati,  the  centre  of  the 
outer  ear  is  pierced,  and  the  hole  enlarged  so  as  to  allow  of  the 
insertion  of  a disc  of  wood  or  ivory  two  and  a half  inches  in 
diameter.  Several  holes  are  made  in  the  helix,  and  string, 
small  brass  rings,  or  beads  inserted.  Some  individuals  also 
pierce  the  lobe  and  greatly  enlarge  it.  The  Sango  or  Yakoma 
of  the  central  Mubangi  wear  large  wooden  cylinders  in  the  lobe 
of  the  ear.1 

The  Bakwese  of  South-West  Congoland  carry  their  cane  or 
bamboo  snuff-box  in  the  ear  (for  snuff-box,  vide  Illustration 
No.  319). 

The  Pygmies  and  some  of  the  Forest  races  of  the  north- 
east pierce  the  upper  and  in  some  cases  the  lower  lip  with 
deep  holes.  When  these  have  healed  they  insert  into  them 
porcupine  quills,  feathers,  flowers,  beads,  or  other  objects  to 
attract  attention.  The  handsome  Banza  of  the  Mubanoi-Lua- 

o 

Mongala  region  pierce  the  upper  and  even  the  lower  lip  and 
wear  a copper  ring  in  it. 

The  young  women  among  the  Bubu , Sango , Bongo , 
Nsakara  tribes  of  the  upper  Mubangi  and  Mbomu  insert  in 
a hole  in  the  upper  lip  a piece  of  quartz,  ivory,  or  iron. 

Far  away  to  the  south-east  the  Bagenya  and  perhaps  the 
Bakumu  of  the  Stanley  Falls  district  wear  some  tooth  or  tusk 
thrust  into  the  upper  lip. 

Some  of  the  peoples  of  the  Banda  and  Manjia  stock  (extreme 
north  of  Congo  basin)  perforate  the  upper  and  lower  lips  in  the 
centre,  and  gradually  introduce  a larger  and  larger  disc  into 
the  hole  until  at  last  the  women  (to  whom  the  practice  is  con- 
fined) are  rendered  almost  speechless,  with  discs  of  one  to  two 
inches  in  diameter  hanging  from  either  lip.  This  is  the  pelele 
of  Nyasaland  and  South-East  Africa. 

In  not  quite  such  an  exaggerated  form  it  appears  amongst 
the  Balese , Balende,  Babira,  and  other  Bantu-speaking  Forest 
tribes  of  the  upper  Aruwimi  basin,  and  is  also  in  vogue  amongst 
the  Bakumu-Bamanga  right  across  from  the  upper  Aruwimi, 
down  the  valley  of  the  Lindi,  to  the  main  Lualaba-Congo  at  Pont- 

1 Baert  and  Werner  reported  of  the  allied  people  of  the  upper  Mongala  (in- 
correctly called  Mongwandi) : “Another  mark  of  high  breeding  is  to  increase  enor- 
mously the  lobe  of  the  ear  by  inserting  ivory  rings  which  reach  to  as  much  as  two 
inches  in  diameter.  To  be  able  to  wear  this  ornament  the  Mongwandi  begins  by  in- 
serting in  the  wound  a ring  of  hard,  rolled  india-rubber  ; at  the  end  of  some  days  he 
replaces  it  by  a larger  piece,  and  so  on  till  he  attains  the  required  size.” 


574  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

hierville.  The  practice  exists  amongst  men  as  well  as  women  in 
the  eastern  Mongo  of  the  Lomami,  the  Turumbu , Lokele , and 
other  Forest  tribes  along  the  north-eastern  angle  of  the  Congo 
between  the  mouth  of  the  Aruwimi  and  the  Stanley  Falls,  and 
then  does  not  reappear  again  southwards  for  a distance  of  about 
nine  hundred  miles,  until  the  natives,  chiefly  of  the  east  shore  of 
Lake  Nyasa,  are  found  wearing  (exclusively  amongst  the  women) 

this  hideous  lip- 
ring or  disc — the 
pelele  of  Living- 
stone. The  range 
of  the  pelele  ex- 
tends from  Eastern 
Nyasaland  well 
into  the  Makua 
country  and  the 
vicinity  of  the 
lower  Zambezi. 
Outside  Africa  this 
deformation  (by  an 
entirely  independ- 
ent invention)  re- 
appears in  Brazil. 

The  pelele  or  lip- 
ornament  of  the 
north-eastern 
Congo  is  usually  a 
disc  of  ivory,  made 
of  a buffalo’s  incisor 
tooth  or  a bush- 
pig’s  tusk  (Gren- 
fell). 

In  many  of  the 
Congoland  tribes, 
as  in  those  of  East 
Africa,  attempts  are  made  to  flatten  the  women’s  breasts  after 
they  have  borne  a child. 

Allusion  has  already  been  made  to  the  suggestions  of 
Grenfell  and  Carvalho  that  certain  tribes  on  the  Lomami  or 
the  upper  Sankuru  River  endeavour  to  loosen  and  lengthen 
the  skin  of  the  lower  abdomen  with  the  idea  of  its  acting  as  a 
tegi-pudenda } (Certain  Forest  tribes  of  Portuguese  Guinea  in 

1 Can  this  be  related  physiologically  in  any  way  to  the  Bushman-Hottentot  tablier  ? 


294.  AN  NGOMBE  (BWELA)  MAN  FROM  THE  REGION 
BETWEEN  THE  NORTHERN  CONGO  AND  THE  MOTIMA 
RIVER— TO  SHOW  CICATRICES  ON  THE  FACE  AND 
METHOD  OF  HAIR-DRESSING 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


575 


the  far  west,  and  certainly  some  of  the  Pygmies  of  Central 
Africa,  appear  to  encourage  the  growth  of  pubic  hair  for  the 
same  purpose.) 

The  rite  of  circumcision  is  by  no  means  universal  in 
Congoland,  yet  perhaps  is  more  common  throughout  the  length 
and  breadth  of  the  Congo  basin  than  it  is  over  an  equal  area 
of  East  Africa.  It  is  practised  by  the  northern  Pygmies,  but 
I have  no  information  on  this  subject  as  regards  the  Batwa  of 
the  south-central  Congo  basin.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  absent 
from  some  of  the  Forest  negroes  of  the  north-east  borderland, 
from  a few  of  the  Mongo  tribes  of  the  centre,  from  the  Bambala 
and  Bahuana  of  the  Kwilu- Kasai,  perhaps  other  tribes  of  more 
or  less  Forest  negroes  in  that  region,  and  a good  many  of  the 
uncivilized  wilder  negroes  of  the  south  and  south-east. 

As  a rule  the  operation  is  performed  by  the  medicine-man 
of  the  village  from  two  to  twelve  days  after  the  child’s  birth 
[on  the  Lower  Congo,  when  the  boy  is  three  or  four  months 
old].  Among  the  Bayanzi  the  mother  has  a considerable  say 
in  the  matter,  and  may  for  some  reason  delay  the  performance 
of  this  operation  until  the  boy  is  able  to  run  about.  Postpone- 
ment to  adolescence  frequently  occurs  on  the  western  Congo, 
and  in  the  Lunda  and  Luba  countries.  Amongst  the  A-lunda 
the  rite  is  often  evaded,  but  it  is  absolutely  necessary  to  the 
assumption  of  chieftainship  or  royalty,  and  Lunda  potentates 
therefore  if  they  have  grown  up  uncircumcised  have  to  submit 
to  this  operation  before  their  recognition  as  chiefs. 

The  Bayaka  of  the  lower  Kwango  practise  circumcision. 
[In  the  attendant  ceremonies  of  the  “bush  school”  boys  are 
initiated  by  an  old  woman,  girls  by  an  old  man.  Both  these 
old  people  must  be  “past  the  period  of  fertility.”]  Circumcision 
takes  place  at  puberty,  the  operator  being  an  old  man.  The 
portion  removed  is  put  on  the  great  fetish,  and  the  name  of  the 
patient  is  changed.  After  the  operation  the  boys  are  considered 
unclean,  and  are  secluded  in  the  bush  until  their  wounds  are 
healed.  During  this  time  they  wear  grass  skirts,  do  no  work, 
and  may  not  enter  a village. 

Sometimes  in  front  of  a hut  there  is  a semicircle  of  sticks 
planted  in  the  ground  and  connected  by  strings,  from  which 
other  strings  are  hanging.  This  is  an  indication  that  a son  of 
the  owner  has  recently  been  circumcised,  and  is  living  in  the 
bush  until  his  wound  is  healed. 

Bentley  points  out  that  circumcision  is  not  universal  in 
Western  Congoland,  but  as  a practice  is  rather  spreading  than 
everywhere  adopted.  It  seems  to  have  reached  the  Kongo 


576  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

kingdom  from  the  north.1  According  to  him,  it  is  entirely  dis- 
sociated from  any  religious  or  fetishistic  ideas.  The  same 
might  be  said  about  circumcision  among  the  riverain  popula- 
tions of  the  Upper  Congo.  Yet  in  other  parts  of  Congoland 
there  seem  to  be  vestiges  of  superstition  or  religion  attached 
to  the  operation.  Father  Geens  states  that  an  idea  is  preva- 
lent among-  the  Bakongo  to  the  effect  that  an  uncircumcised 
man  cannot  live  under  the  same  roof  as  a woman,  even  his  own 
mother,  without  contracting  a disease  difficult  to  cure. 

Information  collected  by  Torday  in  South-West  Congoland 
would  certainly  show  that  in  some  tribes  a distinct  fetishistic 
importance  is  attached  to  circumcision. 

On  the  whole  I am  inclined  to  believe  that  the  practice 
arose  in  connection  with  religious  belief  somewhere  in  Egypt, 
Arabia,  Syria,  or  the  Mediterranean  coast-lands,  and  gradually 
made  its  way  south  into  Africa,  assisted  very  considerably 
during  the  last  thousand  years  by  the  spread  of  Muhammad- 
anism. That  it  is  not  really  necessary  to  the  health  or  welfare 
of  the  negro  race  is  shown  by  the  increase  of  vigorous  tribes 
like  the  Kruboys  of  West  Africa,  who  entirely  repudiate  the 
idea.  Neither,  one  would  think,  can  it  have  been  of  ancient 
introduction  in  Africa,  from  the  fact  that  it  is  entirely  ignored 
by  the  Bahima  of  Uganda  and  Unyoro,  and  by  most  of  the 
Bantu  races  whom  they  have  influenced.  [I  believe  the  few  re- 
maining tribes  of  pagan  Fula  do  not  circumcise.] 

The  Pygmies,  the  Forest  negroes,  and  most  other  human 
types  of  the  Congo  basin  are  a distinctly  hairy  race  as  con- 
trasted with  many  of  the  East  and  South  African  peoples. 
The  hair  of  the  head , however,  seems  to  grow  longer  in  the 
men  than  in  the  women.  It  does  not  grow  to  an  excessive 
length  amongst  the  Pygmies  (with  whom  it  is  often  parti- 
coloured, the  front  half  being  greyish  and  the  back  reddish), 
but  with  them  it  grows  thickly  and  abundantly,  and  does  not 
present  the  same  appearance  of  isolated  tufts  as  amongst  the 
Bushmen,  Hottentots,  and  some  of  the  East  African  negroes. 

Torday2  gives  particulars  as  to  the  quality,  colour,  and 
sections  of  hair  amongst  the  Bahuana , showing  that  in  this 

1 Amongst  the  Duala  and  most  of  the  Bantu  Coast  Cameroons  people  and  those 
of  Ogowe  and  Gaboon  circumcision  is  much  in  vogue.  The  Duala  were  formerly 
very  particular  about  the  operation,  though  it  was  quite  unconnected  with  religious 
belief.  Duala  boys  are  circumcised  at  seven  years  old  and  thenceforth  leave  the 
mother’s  for  the  father’s  dwelling.  They  marry  at  fifteen. 

2 “Notes  on  the  Ethnography  of  the  Bahuana,”  by  E.  Torday  and  T.  A.  Joyce. 
Journal  of  the  Royal  Anthropo logical  Institute , 1907. 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


577 


Kwilu  River  tribe  of  Forest  negroes  there  is  great  variation 
as  to  the  hair  section.  He  states  that  the  colour  is  often 
brownish  rather  than  black.  The  babies  of  all  Congo  peoples 
without  exception  are  born  with  silky,  dark  brown  hair  that  is 
not  nearly  as  tightly  curled  as  that  of  their  parents,  As  a rule 
the  head  and  much  of  the  body  hair  amongst  these  Congo 
negroes  is  coarse  and  wiry.  As  regards  the  body  hair , there 
are  two  kinds,  not  ordinarily  observable  together  on  the  same 
human  type.  There  is  first  of  all  the  foetal  down  of  a yellowish 
or  reddish -grey  colour  discernible  on  many  Congo  infants. 
This  is  straight,  and  not  curled,  and  of  extremely  fine  texture. 
It  soon  disap- 
pears on  the 
ordinary  negro 
child,  but 
amongst  the 
Pygmies  often 
persists  (much 
more  in  the 
males  than  in 
the  females) 
into  maturity 
and  old  age, 
becoming  thick 
and  matted  in 
growth  though 
remaining 
and  pale- 
coloured.  Some 

of  the  Pvcrmv  2 95-  L0KELE  MEN  (0R  topoke),  one  of  whom  (on  the 
oi  ine  rygrny  left)  is  wearing  a lip-ring 

women  retain 

this  fine  yellowish  hair  in  the  form  of  slight  whiskers,  beard, 
and  moustache.  But  this  facial  hair  is  never  so  marked 
as  to  be  easily  discernible  at  a glance.  Amongst  the  male 
Pygmies  at  puberty  coarse,  curly  black  hairs  begin  to  appear 
on  the  front  of  the  body  and  on  the  face  (besides  axillcz , 
pubes , and  legs),  overlying  or  growing  amid  the  finer  pale- 
coloured  foetal  hairs.  These  last  alone  grow  on  the  Pygmy 
back.  It  is  as  though  the  growth  of  special  body  hair 
following  on  pubescence  were  an  afterthought  on  the  part 
of  Nature  in  man’s  development.  This  black  body  hair  of 
the  adult  male  Pygmy  grows  in  separate  patches,  recalling  the 
peppercorn  patterns  of  the  Bushman’s  head  hair.1  The  Pygmy 

1 This  is  well  illustrated  in  Grenfell’s  photographs  of  Aruwimi  Pygmies. 

II. — G 


578  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

women  seem  to  remove  what  body  hair  of  this  coarse  black 
type  may  make  its  appearance. 

When  the  ordinary  negro  of  Congoland  approaches  pubes- 
cence the  hair  in  the  male  begins  to  grow  on  the  armpits, 
pubes,  legs,  chest,  and  stomach,  as  well  as  on  the  face  in  slight 
whiskers,  chin  beard,  and  moustache.  In  the  women  the  growth 

is  limited  to  the 
axillce  and  the 
pubes.  All  the  peo- 
ples, however,  ex- 
cept the  Pygmies 
and  some  of  the 
Forest  tribes,  re- 
move this  body  hair 
more  or  less  com- 
pletely by  means  of 
tweezers  or  by 
shaving.  The  Ba- 
teke,  Bangala,  Ba- 
yanzi,  and  Ngombe 
men  also  remove 
the  moustache, 
whiskers,  and  even 
eyebrows  and  eye- 
lashes by  means 
of  tweezers,  but 
usually  retain  the 
beard.  The  women 
amongst  the  same 
tribes  remove  the 
eyelashes  and  the 
hairs  of  the  eye- 

„ brows.  The  Ba- 

296.  ILLUSTRATION  OF  UNCHECKED  GROWTH  OF  , 1 1 

HEAD  HAIR  IN  A MONGO  NEGRO  OF  THE  UPPER  yak  a SliaVe  tile 
CONGO,  TYPICAL  OF  ALL  THE  CONGO  PEOPLES  mOUStache,  but 

grow  a beard.  The 

Bahuana  pull  out  both  beard  and  moustache.  So  do  the 
Bambala  and  Babuma,  and  the  tribes  along  the  southern 
edge  of  the  Congo  basin,  as  well  as  the  people  of  the 
Lualaba-Congo.  In  the  Lunda  and  Luba  countries,  Angola, 
Kongo,  Kakongo,  the  Forest  tribes  of  the  north-east,  and 
the  Manbettu,  Nyamnyam,  Sango,  Banza,  Mongwandi,  and 
Ababwa  peoples  the  hair  is  allowed  to  grow  unchecked  on 
the  men’s  faces,  but  the  Lunda  and  Luba  chiefs  endeavour 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


579 


to  produce  the  beard  in  a long  plaited,  plastered  rod,  depending 
stiffly  from  the  middle  of  the  chin,  and  artificially  lengthened 
by  weaving  black  fibre  into  it. 

As  regards  dressing  the  hair  of  the  head,  the  Pygmies 
seem  to  leave  it  entirely  to  nature,  to  grow  as  it  pleases. 
Nowhere  (as  far  as  I can  ascertain)  amongst  the  Congo  peoples 
is  the  head  hair  shaved  away  completely.  In  this  they  afford 
a marked  contrast  to  many  East  African  tribes,  who,  especially 
as  regards  the  women,  have  such  a preference  for  closely  shaven 
skulls.  Not  only  is  the  head  hair  more  abundant  in  growth  and 
possibly  longer  than  amongst  the  Hottentot  races  and  the  East 
African  Bantu,  but  the  natives  take  pride  (as  a rule)  in  exag- 
gerating its  length  so  as  to  make  it  appear  negroid  rather  than 
negro.  [It  is  curious  nevertheless,  as  indicated  in  another  chapter, 
that  as  an  anthropological  feature  the  tightly  curled  negro  hair 
seems  to  be  the  most  enduring  of  elements  in  the  hybrids  that 
have  occurred  between  the  Caucasian  races  and  the  negro. 
Many  of  the  Batusi,  Bahima,  Nyamnyam,  and  Bakuba  people 
in  facial  lineaments  are  quite  half  Caucasian,  and  resemble 
strongly  the  Galas  or  Egyptians  ; yet  their  head  hair,  though 
if  unchecked  it  may  be  abundant  in  growth,  is  emphatically  that 
of  the  negro.] 

Nevertheless  some  shaving  of  the  head  does  occur  in 
Congoland.  Grenfell  states  that  the  Baloi  of  the  lower 
Mubangi  “shave  their  heads  very  much,  leaving  only  a patch 
of  short  wool  behind.”  The  Bayaka  and  many  of  the  Kasai- 
Sankuru  peoples  shave  or  clip  the  head  hair  into  three  or  five 
ridges — a design  frequently  imitated  in  their  pottery.  The 
Bambala  shave  all  round  the  head,  leaving  only  a long  top- 
knot,  but  afterwards  mask  this  artificial  baldness  with  plaits  of 
false  hair.  The  Bagenya  shave  the  sides  of  the  head.  The 
northern  Ngombe  shave  all  round  a central,  cleft  mound  of 
hair. 

The  Mahbettu  women  dress  their  hair  with  the  most  elabo- 
rate care.  It  is  combed  and  arranged  in  a great  many  different 
styles,  but  always  with  the  main  object  of  forming  a kind  of 
cylinder  slanting  backwards.  This  fashion  extends  southwards 
to  the  Ngombe  women  north  of  the  main  Congo.  The  Man- 
bettu  men  also  train  their  hair  into  a cylindrical  shape,  but  of  a 
shorter  length,  and  the  cone  is  generally  covered  with  a little 
straw  hat  which  has  been  carefully  woven,  and  is  absolutely 
square  in  form.  This  hat  is  fixed  to  the  hair-cylinder  by  means 
of  pins  of  ivory,  bone,  horn,  copper,  or  wood.  Manbettu  women 
do  not  wear  this  hat,  but  en  revanche  endeavour  to  grow  the 


580  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


cylinder  of  hair  to  an  extravagant  length.  To  add  to  this 
curious  pickaxe-like  shape  of  the  head  (which  is  imitated  in 
certain  masks  of  South-Central  Congoland),  the  Manbettu 
mothers  press  the  heads  of  their  new-born  children  by  means 
of  flat  pieces  of  bark  which  are  tied  tightly  on  either  side  of 
the  little  skull.  Nyamnyam,  Ababua,  Sango,  and  other 

peoples  of  the 
Mubangi- 
Wele  weave 
black  thread 
into  their  wool 
to  lengthen  the 
hair.  The  head 
hair  is  even 
longer  in  the 
more  aristo- 
cratic types  of 
N yamnya  m, 
and  the  me- 
thods of  dress- 
ing and  plait- 
i n g it  are 
familiar  to  most 
students  of 
Africa  through 
the  photo- 
graphs of 
Richard  Buch- 
ta,  an  explorer 
of  the  Egyptian 
Sudan  just 
prior  to  the 
Mahdistrevolt. 

On  the  up- 
per Mubangi 


29 7.  SPECIMENS  OF  RAZORS  FROM  THE  UPPER  CONGO  ; ALSO 
(IN  SHEATH)  KNIFE  FOR  CUTTING  “CICATRICES’' 


and  the  Mbomu,  as  far  north  as  the  district  of  Bangasu. 


young 


unmarried  girls  are  entirely  nude  and  their  hair  reaches  their 
shoulders  ; they  further  lengthen  it  artificially  by  plaiting  in 
the  hair  of  the  neck  long  black  threads,  made  of  dyed  fibres 
mixed  with  hair.  From  a distance  this  resembles  natural  hair 
sufficiently  to  be  mistaken  for  it,  and  the  false  hair  often  drags 
as  low  as  the  ground.  It  is  very  oily,  and  when  they  are 
working  or  walking  they  roll  it  round  their  arms,  thus  making 
up  a very  bulky  bundle. 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


58i 


.v,  if mp 

t '£$ &$$$-%* 


The  married  women  of  the  upper  Mubangi  wear  their  hair 
long,  as  the  men  do,  and  plaited  in  all  kinds  of  patterns, 
sprinkled  with  coloured  beads. 

“This  head-dress”  (writes  a Belgian  explorer,  Vangele)  “is  really 
splendid  and  provokes  the  astonishment  of  travellers.  The  women  are  very 
proud  of  it.  They 
devote  several  days 
to  completing  their 
preparations  in  this 
fashion.  When  their 
hair  is  not  long 
enough  to  allow  the 
dressing  of  their 
head — which  occu- 
pies them  many 
days  — to  be  com- 
pleted, or  when  they 
are  afraid  that  their 
head-dress  may  be- 
come untidy,  they 
conceal  their  hair 
under  a net  of  fine 
woven  fibre.  The 
men  do  the  same. 

Delicately  carved 
ivory  pins  uphold 
the  skilful  edifice 
and  give  the  whole 
a highly  artistic  ap- 
pearance.” 

Among  the 
Nsakara  the  wo- 
men make  up 
their  head  - dress 
by  means  of  flat 
plaits  literally 
covered  with  cow- 
ries  or  beads. 

These  plaits  start 
from  the  neck,  are  drawn  towards  the  front,  and  form  a sort  ol 
bonnet,  sometimes  resembling  a bishops  mitre  in  shape.  The 
chiefs  arrange  their  hair  in  the  same  style.  The  whole  head- 
dress is  plentifully  sprinkled  with  palm  oil  and  red  powder. 

The  Mongwandi  of  the  upper  Mongala  are  allied  to  the 
Sango  of  the  upper  Mubangi.  Their  hairdressing  is  thus  de- 
scribed by  Belgian  explorers  : — 


■ , * 

. y.  ' 

■i  * $ , „ Ss 


298.  A WOMAN  FROM  THE  BWELA  COUNTRY,  NORTHERN 
CONGOLAND,  WEARING  HER  HAIR  IN  THE  CYLIN- 
DRICAL FASHION  ADOPTED  BY  THE  MANBETTU  WOMEN 
(Also,  note  cicatrized  face.) 


582  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

From  each  side  of  the  head  there  fall  to  the  ears  two  head- 
bands,  made  either  of  copper  bars  or  of  little  red,  blue,  white, 
and  green  beads  of  European  manufacture.  [The  neck  is 
covered  by  a necklace  of  beads.]  The  dandies  among  the 
men  put  on  a false  head  of  hair,  which  consists  in  tying  together 
small  blackened  strings,  reaching  down  to  the  ground  ; as  each 
string  is  attached  to  a tuft  of  hair,  one  can  form  an  idea  of  the 
patience  required  on  the  part  of  the  artist  employed  in  pre- 
paring such  ahead-dress 
and  of  the  weight  which 
the  head  has  to  support. 

The  women  dress 
their  hair  in  much  the 
same  way  as  the  men. 
The  necklace  is  re- 
placed by  a bead  mosaic, 
a masterpiece  of  pa- 
tience, which  keeps  up 
the  hair  above  the  neck. 
Others  likewise  tie  on 
strings,  only  on  reach- 
ing the  waist  they  wind 
them  on  a stick  in  such 
a way  as  to  form  a thick 
bundle,  which  they  al- 
ways carry  in  their  arms 
and  which  serves  them 
as  a pillow  at  night ! 

The  Banza  of  the 
lower  Mubangi  are 
passionately  fond  of 
stringing  red  beads  on 
their  tresses  of  hair. 
The  Banza  women  plait  the  long  hair  at  the  back  of  the  head  and 
bring  the  plaits  forward  to  make  a coronal  about  the  forehead.  Or 
they  arrange  them  in  a fan-shaped  diadem  on  the  top  of  the  head. 
The  Ngombe  about  the  mouth  of  the  Ruki  or  Juapa  River  follow 
the  same  fashion  of  the  diadem,  and  ornament  the  plaits  that 
form  it  with  beads,  discs  of  copper,  and  quills  of  feathers,  or  even 
kauri  shells.  The  Bondonga  (non- Bantu)  of  the  Rubi  River  cut 
their  hair  into  three  or  more  long  tufts,  like  a clown’s  perruque, 
and  this  fashion  (illustrated  by  Grenfell’s  photograph  on  p.  583) 
reaches  to  the  north-east  bend  of  the  Congo  and  the  Bakumu  of 
Stanley  Falls. 


299.  A METHOD  OF  HAIR-DRESSING  AMONGST  THE 
NORTHERN  NGOMBE  WOMEN,  SIMILAR  TO  THE 
NSAKARA  FASHION 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


The  Forest  tribes  along  the  north-east  Congo  adopt  many 
different  fashions  in  hairdressing,  especially  amongst  the  men. 
These  are  well  illustrated  by  the  accompanying  photographs. 
Amongst  the  northern  Ngombe  and  Bapoto  the  hair  is  trained 
upwards,  as  in  the  illustration,  into  a kind  of  blunt  cone  some- 
times cleft  in  the 
middle. 


“In  1890  the 
principal  work  of  the 
women  at  Bopoto 
seemed  to  be  the 
dressing  of  the  hair 
of  the  men  into  all 
sorts  of  fantastic 
shapes,  cones  and 
mitres  preponderat- 
ing, though  there  is 
great  latitude  in  the 
shape,  number,  size, 
and  direction  of 
horns.  The  principal 
work  of  the  men  is  to 
get  their  hair  dressed 
— lying,  Samson 
and  Delilah  fashion, 
in  the  shade  of  trees 
or  in  open  court- 
yards.” (Grenfell.) 


The  Bayanzi  of 
the  main  Congo 
had  formerly  a very 
characteristic  way 
of  dressing  the  hair. 

It  was  plaited  and 
plastered,  and  the 
foremost  plaits  3°°* 
were  made  to  hang 
down  on  either  side  of  the  head  like  horns,  or  like  those  old 
greased  locks  of  the  middle  nineteenth-century  butcher.  The 
women  adopted  much  the  same  fashion,  but  did  not  appear  to 
be  able  to  produce  such  length  in  the  hair  as  was  achieved  by 
the  men.1  Among  the  eastern  Bayanzi  apparently  the  wearing 


•A  HOLIDAY  SPENT  WITH  THE  HAIR-DRESSER. 
BONDONGA  STYLE  OF  WEARING  THE  HAIR 


1 “ But  I have  seen  some  women  whose  heads  were  completely  shaved  both  sides, 
and  had  only  preserved  their  hair  in  the  central  zone.  This  hair  is  bound  up  in  a pad 
stuck  together  with  palm  oil  and  presents  the  appearance  of  the  crest  in  a fireman’s 
helmet.”  (Father  Geens.) 


584  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

of  the  hair  in  two  long-  dependent  horns  appears  to  be  limited  to 
the  women.  The  men  rather  adopt  the  Bateke  fashion,  or  else 
wear  the  hair  in  three  longitudinal  ridges,  like  the  Bayaka.  The 
Bateke  men  and  most  of  the  women  straighten  and  strain  the 
hair  up  into  a kind  of  chignon,  more  or  less  on  the  top  of  the 
head,  in  the  shape  illustrated  in  my  drawing. 

The  Bakongo  men  and  women  do  not  appear  to  have 
directed  much  attention  to  dressing  their  hair,  which  is  merely 
clipped  from  time  to  time,  and  in  the  case  of  the  women  occa- 
sionally parted,  plaited,  and 
directed  backwards. 

The  Babwende  of  the 
northern  cataract  Congo 
take  more  trouble  about 
their  hair-dressing.  Their 
coiffures  vary  infinitely,  ac- 
cording to  the  more  or  less 
original  talent  of  the  hair- 
dresser. Some  Babwende 
wear  their  hair  very  short, 
and  without  plaits  or  orna- 
ments of  any  kind.  Others 
shave  their  heads  for  hy- 
gienic reasons. 

o 

The  Holo  people  of  the 
middle  Kwango  also  dress 
their  hair  in  long  plaits 
which  hang  down  perpen- 
dicularly, and  no  doubt  add 
to  its  length  by  artificial 
means. 

The  Bayaka  dress  their 
hair  in  the  following  manner.  After  shaving  the  head  in  be- 
tween three  great  longitudinal  ridges  of  hair,  they  comb  out 
and  plait  these  sections  (getting  the  kink  out  as  much  as 
possible  with  castor-oil).  The  plait  made  from  the  central 
ridge  is  divided  over  the  forehead,  and  each  end  is  passed 
behind  either  ear.  (Grenfell,  Torday.) 

The  Baluba , Bakuba,  and  other  peoples  of  South-Central 
Africa  adopt  many  fantastic  methods  of  shaping  the  hair,  gene- 
rally into  a series  of  helmet-like  ridges  or  cockscombs.  These 
patterns  are  frequently  reproduced  in  pottery.  The  Alunda 
wind  long  plaits  transversely  round  the  head  (the  rest  of  the 
hair  being  clipped  close),  and  end  with  a coil  or  tuft  at  the 


301.  A FASHION  IN  HAIR-DRESSING, 
YALEMBA,  NORTHERN  CONGO 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


585 

back  of  the  head.  Or  the  hair  is  plaited  and  hangs  in  long 
ringlets.  Wigs,  however,  are  usually  worn  by  the  men  of 
importance.  The  Lunda  women  and  slaves  wear  their  hair 
short,  and  even  shave  a large  triangular  space  above  the  fore- 
head. 

Amongst  the  Bambala  the  hair  is  allowed  to  grow  on  the 
top  of  the  head  in  the  form  of  a cap,  the  rest  being  shaved  and 
painted  black  with  soot  and  palm  oil.  Some  wear  hair  at  the 
back  of  the  head,  made  up  into  tresses  with  soot  and  palm  oil. 
The  moustache  is  usually  shaved.  The  beard,  which  grows  on 
the  point  of  the  chin  only,  often  attains  considerable  length,  but 
is  bound  up  under  the  chin,  and  pieces  of  clay  are  often  hidden 
in  the  knot  to  give  it  a more  important  appearance.1 

As  regards  ornaments  which  are  not  developments  of  the 
integument,  the  Congo  peoples  are  much 
like  all  other  savages  or  semi-savages  in 

o.  o 

valuing  necklaces , rings , bracelets , anklets. 

Amongst  the  grimly  humorous  cannibals, 
necklaces  of  human  teeth  are  in  great  re- 
quest. The  Forest  tribes  of  the  north, 
north-east,  and  centre  value  especially  as 
a manly  adornment  necklaces  of  leopards 
or  bush-pig’s  teeth.  Beads,  seeds,  and 
any  other  objects  easily  threaded  are 
used  by  poorer  people.2  Necklaces  have 
gone  much  out  of  fashion,  however,  amongst  the  better- 
clothed  Kongo  and  Lunda  peoples.  The  men  of  all  tribes 
wear  rings  of  iron,  brass,  palm-nut,  or  plaited  string.  The 
women  of  the  eastern  Bayanzi,  Banunu , Bakutu , and  Losa- 
kani  tribes  wear  extraordinary  collars  of  brass  or  copper, 
sufficiently  illustrated  in  the  accompanying  photographs.  Some 
of  these  brass  necklaces  are  an  “honourable”  sign  of  slavery, 
indicating  that  the  woman  is  a valued  slave  or  concubine. 

The  women  on  the  western  Mubangi  and  on  the  northern 
bend  of  the  Congo  (Bangala  to  Aruwimi)  wear  thick,  heavy, 
rounded  collars  of  copper,  iron,  or  brass  (of  from  twenty  to  twenty- 
five  pounds  in  weight),  the  shape  of  which  is  illustrated  in  the 

1 Father  Geens  remarks  of  the  Babwende  : “Chiefs  often  allow  their  beards  to 
grow.  Some  let  them  grow  very  long  and  roll  them  up  under  the  chin  like  a ball.  I 
have  seen  beards  1 m.  50  in  length.” 

This  recalls  a similar  practice  amongst  the  Bateke  of  the  western  Congo.  Vide 
Guiral,  Le  Congo  Frangais. 

2 Among  the  southern  Ngombe  (Ruki  River),  necklaces  are  made  of  beads, 
claws  and  teeth,  dried  fruit  and  nuts,  berries  of  all  sizes,  kauris,  ends  of  rushes, 
rope,  etc.,  with,  in  the  middle,  a large  mussel  shell  or  a shell  of  a small  tortoise. 


302.  THE  CHIGNON 
AND  COIFFURE  OF 
A BATEKE  MAN, 
FROM  NEAR 
STANLEY  POOL 


586  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

accompanying  photographs.  Grenfell,  in  his  diary,  queries  how 
they  can  get  them  on  and  off.  A Belgian  missionary  supplies 
him  with  the  answer  : — 

“ The  manner  of  fixing  on  the  ornament  (necklace)  is  entirely 
original.  When  the  necklace  is  nearly  completed,  an  opening  is  left 

wide,  enough  to  allow  the 
woman’s  neck  to  pass.  She 
then  lies  on  the  floor,  one  end 
of  the  necklace  is  placed  on 
the  anvil,  and  the  smith  closes 
the  opening.  The  operation 
of  removing  the  ornament  is 
no  less  complicated.  The 
woman  lies  on  the  ground, 
two  stakes  are  then  driven 
into  the  earth  five  metres  to 
the  right  and  left  of  her,  to 
which  the  necklace  is  fastened 
by  means  of  strong  creepers 
(lianes).  Two  negroes,  one 
on  the  right,  the  other  on  the 
left,  twist  the  creepers,  and 
the  necklace  gradually  opens 
as  they  get  shorter.  When 
the  opening  is  wide  enough 
to  allow  the  neck  to  pass 
through,  the  owner  of  the 
ornament  retires.” 

Bangles  and  anklets  ol 
ivory,  copper,  iron,  and 
brass  (sometimes  very 
heavy)  are  worn  by  the 
women  on  the  Mubangi 
River,  the  Upper— nor- 
thern— Congo,  and  the 
Aruwimi ; also  among  the 
Ngombe  and  Mongo 
tribes.  In  this  last  con- 
geries of  peoples,  south 
of  the  main  Congo,  the 
women’s  anklets  are  of  copper,  very  heavy,  and  sometimes 
three  in  number  on  each  ankle. 

A remarkable  point,  however,  in  Congo  decorations  is  a 
negative  one  : very  little  use  seems  to  be  made  of  ivory,  as 
compared  to  the  customs  of  other  parts  of  tropical  Africa ; and 
in  the  same  way  not  so  much  prominence  is  given  to  iron  in 


303.  (i)  WOODEN  PATS  FOR  MARKING  NATIVE 
POTTERY.  (2)  SPECIMENS  OF  NATIVE 
COMBS,  LOWER  CONGO.  (3)  HAIRPIN 
FROM  THE  UPPER  CONGO.  (4)  A SPOON 
FROM  THE  BANGALA  PEOPLE,  UPPER 
CONGO 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


587 


these  adornments.  Leg  and  arm  ornaments  of  coiled  brass  or 
iron  wire  are  worn  by  the  women  of  the  Mubangi  and  the 
western  Congo,  and  also  by  those  in  the  far  east  and  south  of 
Congoland  ; but  this  type  of  ornament  is  likewise  less  common 
than  in  Eastern  or  Sudanian  Africa.  The  Ababua  or  Babati 
women  of  the  Rubi-Wele  wear  on  their  legs  spirals  of  fine  iron 
wire  (the  men  wear 
iron  anklets).  The 
Banza  women  wear 
armlets  of  cowries 
and  leg-spirals  of 
thick  copper  wire. 

Some  art  and 
attention  is  be- 
stowed occasionally 
on  the  waist-belts 
and  girdles,  es- 
pecially by  the  men. 

These  are  more 
usually  worn  just 
above  the  hips, 
rather  than  round 
the  waist. 

In  the  northern 
regions  they  are 
sometimes  made  of 
the  stiff  bristles  of 
an  elephant’s  tail. 

Young  Ababua 
women  wear  girdles 
of  two  or  three  rows 
of  iron  hoops.  Aba- 
bua men  use  a 
girdle  of  bark  fibre 
twisted  into  a thick 
string. 

In  the  southern 

part  of  the  Congo  basin  the  girdle  is  often  made  of  plaited 
grass. 

As  regards  clothing , it  has  been  already  stated  that  many 
tribes  of  the  north-west,  north,  north-centre,  and  north-east 
wear  tegipudenda  of  the  scantiest  description  in  the  case  of  the 
men  and  allow  the  young  women  to  go  naked  and  the  matrons  to 
wear  at  most  a narrow  girdle  or  a minute  apron. 


304.  (i)  NATIVE  COPPER  COLLAR  WORN  BY  WOMEN  ON 
THE  UPPER  MUBANGI  RIVER.  (2)  NECKLACE  OF 
COPPER  - WIRE  BEADS  AND  FIVE  LEOPARD’S 
TEETH,  WORN  BY  A LOKELE  CHIEF  (N.E.  CONGO). 
(3)  NECKLACE  OF  PIG’S  TEETH  OFTEN  WORN 
BY  SORCERERS  (UPPER  CONGO) 


588  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  simplest  garment  of  the  women  is  a bunch  of  leaves 
[this  may  be  seen  in  the  north-east  of  Congoland  or  perhaps 
among  the  Mongo  tribes  in  the  centre].  Men  rarely  if  ever 
adopt  this  plan,  and  usually  advance  at  once  from  scarcely 
qualified  nakedness  to  the  simple  tegipudenda  of  dressed  skin 
or  bast  cloth.  In  the  next  stage  of  costume  this  mere  sporran 
or  rag  hanging  from  the  loin-girdle  is  supplemented  by  a 


305.  SOLID  BRASS  COLLAR,  WEIGHING  NEARLY  25  LB.,  WORN  AS  AN  ORNAMENT 
BY  THE  WIFE  OF  A BANGALA  CHIEF  ON  THE  UPPER  CONGO 
(These  collars  are  more  often  of  copper,  away  from  the  great  trade  routes.) 

narrow  continuation  of  string  or  thong  which  passes  between 
the  thighs  and  is  drawn  up  under  and  over  the  loin-girdle  at 
the  back,  perhaps  afterwards  hanging  down  between  the  nates 
in  a tail,1  then,  in  a further  advance,  the  cloth  flap  in  front  is 
balanced  by  one  behind,  a gap  being  left  over  the  side  of  each 
hip ; and  by  degrees  with  extensions  and  embellishments  we 
have  here  the  germ  of  breeches,  beginning  at  first  in  a 

1 The  wearing  of  tails  over  the  buttocks  has  been  a favourite  custom  with  the 
negroes  from  early  culture  stage,  though  it  now  only  lingers  among  the  bush  tribes. 
Elsewhere  it  has  given  rise  to  the  many  legends  of  tailed  men. 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS  589 

garment  like  a pair  of  bathing-drawers.  [This  is  illustrated  in 
the  figure  of  the  Ngombe  negro  on  page  786.] 

In  the  western  and  southern  regions  of  the  Congo  this 

o o 


somewhat  becoming  garment  is  not  adopted.  Instead  a waist- 
cloth  is  worn  all  round  the  body  from  below  a waist-girdle,  down 
to  the  knees — an  ugly,  graceless  costume. 

The  dress  of  the  Bayanzi  is  somewhat  scanty.  It  con- 
sists, in  the  case  of  women  as 
in  that  of  the  men,  solely  of  a 
loin-cloth,  or  piece  of  native 
material  rolled  round  the  thighs 
and  hanging  down  as  low  as 
the  knees.  On  days  when  it 
is  cold  and  in  the  evenings,  the 
“ men  of  leisure  ” wear  in  addi- 
tion a piece  of  cloth  of  the 
same  kind  which  they  wind 
round  their  bodies,  and  which 
they  take  care  to  lay  aside 
when  the  temperature  rises. 

The  natives  now  usually  pre- 
fer and  obtain  European  cali- 
coes ; but  in  older  days  they 
wore  cloth  manufactured  from 
raphia-palm  bast  (ptcsu). 

This  was  tinted  a dirty  red 
by  means  of  camwood,  and 
fringed  with  a small  band  of 
red  cloth. 

On  the  west  (ignoring*  for 
the  moment  the  far-spreading 
cotton  goods  of  Europe  and 
America)  and  in  the  south-west 
and  south-centre,  the  native 
cloth  was  made  almost  entirely 

from  this  raphia  “bast”  ( pusu , dipusii)}  In  the  east,  north- 
centre,  and  north  (besides  parts  of  the  west)  the  dress 
material  was  the  inner  fibrous  bast  of  the  Ur 0 stigma  fig  tree,1 2 
after  the  outer  rind  or  bark  had  been  removed.  This  is  the 
“ bark  cloth  ” of  Uganda,  described  at  length  in  my  book  on 
that  region.  These  strips  of  fig-tree  bast  are  soaked  in 


306.  A SLAVE  WOMAN  OF  BWEMBA, 
WESTERN  CONGO,  WEARING  A BRASS 
COLLAR 


1 It  is  really,  I believe,  the  outer  skin  of  the  young  growing  fronds  of  the  Raphia 
palm  : see  p.  593.  Short  cloths  were  also  made  in  the  western  and  south-western 

Congo  basin  from  grass.  2 Or  a kindred  species  of  the  Urostigma. 


590  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

water,  and  then  felted  by  being  beaten  with  wooden  mallets 
to  reduce  them  to  a uniform  thinness.  After  this  the  lone 
strips  are  joined  together  with  stitches.  “Bark”  or  felted 
bast  cloth  of  this  description  was  the  universal  wear  of 
Negroland  at  one  time,  from  Liberia,  the  Gold  Coast,  and 
forested  Nigeria  to  the  Cameroons,  Congo  basin,  Angola, 
Nyasaland,  Mozambique,  and  all  parts  of  East  Africa  well 
supplied  with  Urostigma  fig  trees.  Outside  the  “ bark  cloth  ” 
region  the  negroes  and  negroids  wore  skins.  Then  at  some 
date  not  yet  determined  Bantu  (Hima)  civilization  brought 
down  into  Central  Congoland  the  loom  and  the  weaving  of 
bast  or  other  fibres  which  could  be  made  into  yarn. 


307.  (i)  A MUBANGI  LEG  ORNAMENT  (COILS  OF  BRASS  WIRE).  (2)  AND  (2)  BRASS 
COLLARS  WORN  ROUND  THE  NECK  BY  WOMEN  AS  A TOKEN  OF  SERVITUDE 
(From  the  country  south  of  the  main  Congo,  between  Stanley  Pool  and  Lake  Leopold  II.) 

Later  still  Moslem  civilization  taught  the  spinning  and 
weaving  of  cotton , though  this  art  scarcely  reached  any  part  of 
the  true  Congo  basin  except  perhaps  the  Nyasa-Tanganyika 
plateau,  or  the  regions  of  the  Lower  Congo  under  Portuguese 
influence  and  the  far  interior  of  the  Cameroons-Congo  water- 
parting. 

Whilst  the  Bayanzi,  therefore,  and  most  of  the  peoples  south 
of  the  western  Congo  used  raphia  cloth  (“  Kasai  cloths  ” of 
some  writers)  for  their  garments,1  north  of  that  great  river  the 
common  material  was  fig-tree  felted  cloth  (“  bark  cloth  ”). 

1 Or  in  some  cases  (especially  in  the  Kongo  states  and  south-western  region) 
grass  cloth,  long  grass  filaments  being  plaited  or  woven  instead  of  raphia  bast.  This 
even  gave  rise  to  a currency. 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


591 


This — before  the  inrush  of  North  African  and  European 
cotton  goods — was  the  clothing  material  of  the  Nyamnyam, 
Manbettu,  Ababwa,  Banza,  and  the  peoples  of  the  Aruwimi 
and  north-east  Congo,  although  in  the  course  of  trade  the 
Ngombe  people  carried  raphia  cloth  to  the  Mongala  River. 


308.  (i)  - IRON  BANGLE  FROM  BANALYA,  ARUWIMI  RIVER  (NATIVE  IRON  ROUGHLY 
WORKED).  (2)  WOMAN’S  ANKLET  OF  BRASS,  MUBANGI  RIVER 


The  Manbettu  men  obtain  a wide  and  long  piece  of  bark 
cloth  (composed,  of  course,  of  many  narrow  strips  sewn 
together),  and  pass  it  loosely  between  the  legs,  bringing  the 
ends  up  back  and  front  under  a girdle.  When  the  cloth  is 


309.  BAKWESE  NECK  ORNAMENT  FORMED  OF  NATIVE-MADE  BEADS  OF  BLUE  GLASS 
WHICH  ARE  FROM  THE  KATANGA  COUNTRY 
The  pendant  represents  miniature  bellows  such  as  are  used  in  native  forges. 


new  and  stiff  (it  is  a ruddy-brown  colour,  as  in  Uganda)  the 
rather  crimped  ends  spread  out  like  great  fans  in  front  of  the 
chest  and  below  the  shoulder-blades,  suggesting  occasionally 
some  of  the  extraordinary  forms  of  pleated  cloths  assumed  in 
the  garments  of  the  ancient  Egyptians.  When  this  bark  cloth 


592  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

is  new  its  lack  of  suppleness  compels  the  Manbettu  to  walk 
in  an  ungainly  manner,  with  his  legs  far  apart,  but  as  this 
shows  that  his  cloth  is  new,  he  is  proud  of  his  awkward  stride. 
The  chiefs  and  other  great  personages  on  festive  occasions  at 
dances  wear  an  extraordinary  bustle  behind,  which  with  their 
tucked-up  cloth  gives  them  the  ungainly  appearance  of  female 
trippers  at  the  English  seaside  who  desire  to  paddle  without 
wetting  their  petticoats. 

Manbettu  women  wear  a small  apron,  also  made  of  felted 
bark  cloth,  but  over  their  stomachs  they  hang  a kind  of 
“ sporran  ” made  of  leaves  plaited  together  in  a heart-shape. 

The  clothing  of  the  Ababua  is  much  more  summary  : a 
small  piece  of  bark  cloth  passed  between  the  legs  of  the  men, 


310.  women’s  girdles  of  woven  grass  or  PALM  BAST,  UPPER  CONGO 


and  attached  before  and  behind  to  the  loin-girdle.  This  some- 
times ends  in  front  with  a bundle  of  hair  or  the  furry  tail  of  a 
wild  cat.  A somewhat  similar  object  may  be  seen  in  the  dress 
of  one  of  the  Pygmies  in  Grenfell’s  photograph  on  page  332. 
Ababua  children  and  unmarried  girls  go  naked,  but  after 
marriage  a young  woman  wears  a very  minute  piece  of  bark 
cloth  as  a tegipudenda  ; perhaps  a larger  covering  after  she  has 
borne  a child. 

The  southern  Ababua  (Babanda,  Magboro,  Mabenja)  wear 
remarkable  “embroideries”  of  iron  beads  or  iron  rings  (like 
mail-shirts)  on  their  small  aprons  of  bast  felted  cloth. 

Grenfell  noted  in  1885  that  the  Ngombe  women  on  the  east 
bank  of  the  lower  Mitbangi  wore  full,  short  skirts  of  grass  or  palm 
filaments.  This  is  also  the  custom  of  the  Bangala  women  and 
of  some  of  the  Ngombe  tribes  along  the  northern  Congo. 
Sometimes  the  Bangala  women  confine  their  dress  to  a double, 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


593 


broad  girdle  of  closely  plaited  grass  cloth  with  a large  bustle  of 
loose  filaments  behind,  as  in  the  illustration.  In  other  cases 
the  short  skirt  of  filaments  is  continuous.  Amongst  some  of 
the  Npombe  women  it  looks  like  the  dress  of  a conventional 

o 

ballet  dancer.  The  thickness  is  attained  sometimes  by  their 
putting  on  as  many  as 
twenty  skirts  of  filaments, 
one  on  top  of  the  other. 

The  B age  ny  a men 
near  Stanley  Falls  in  1885 
(accordingto  Grenfell) 
wore  only  a short  skirt  or 
apron  of  banana  felted 
fibre,  while  the  women 
were  contented  with  the 
bunch  of  leaves  so  charac- 
teristic of  the  northern 
forest  tribes.  But  just  as 
they  have  almost  put  aside 
their  own  language  in 
favour  of  Swahili,  so  they 
have  now  adopted  the 
Swahili  mode  of  dress. 

The  Baluba , Bakuba , 

Bambala,  and  most  other 
peoples  of  the  south-cen- 
tral and  south-west  Congo 
basin  (except  they  are 
chiefs  or  personages  of 
importance)  wear  simply  a 
palm-fibre  cloth  in  a strip 
about  a yard  in  length  and 
half  a yard  in  width.  This 
is  fastened  round  the  waist, 
usually  attached  to  a girdle 
of  similar  cloth  or  of  woven 
grass  which  is  coloured 
with  red  clay.  The  cloth 

is  usually  tied  at  the  back  so  as  to  leave  the  upper  part  of  the 
posterior  bare.  Under  this  cloth  women  wear  strings  of  beads 
round  the  hips.  Over  the  cloth,  in  front,  the  men  wear  sporrans 
made  of  the  skins  of  goats  or,  more  rarely,  small  antelopes. 
These  are  dried  in  the  sun  and  oiled,  but  the  hair  is  not  re- 
moved. They  are  usually  cut  into  the  shape  of  a small  apron. 


311. 


PUSU ; BAST  OR  FIBRE  STRIPPED  FROM 
THE  FRONDS  OF  THE  RAPHIA  PALM 


II. H 


594  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Torday  mentions  that  the  Bambala  sew  their  garments  with 
eyed  iron  needles  of  native  make,  and  use  palm  fibre  for  thread. 
These  native-made  needles  (not  unlike  large  sail-making  needles) 
are  widely  spread  over  the  Congo  basin,  though  no  doubt  they 
only  date  from  the  introduction  of  Hima  civilization,  and  were 
preceded  by  splinters  of  bamboo  or  of  bone.  Some  of  these 
are  still  used  for  coarse  work.  They  serve  to  make  a hole 
through  which  the  thread  is  pushed. 

Grenfell  several  times  mentions  the  extent  to  which  clothes 


312.  GRASS  SKIRT  OF  THE  NGOMBE  WOMEN 


of  European  make  or  shape  are  spreading  amongst  the  Baluba 
and  Alunda,  who  have  an  equally  strong  fancy  for  European 
boots. 

It  is  only  in  the  western  and  south-western  regions  of  the 
Congo  basin  that  we  find  elaborate  clothing.  The  dress  of  the 
Kongo  peoples  has  been  so  largely  Europeanized  during 
the  last  twenty-five  years  that  they  can  hardly  be  said  to  have 
a national  costume.  But  the  least  clothing  on  behalf  of  the 
men  is  a rather  long  loin-cloth  hanging  from  the  girdle,  and  in 
the  case  of  the  adult  women,  draperies  beginning  at  the  arm- 
pits.  The  Bakuba-Bahiba-Lttnda  peoples  have  adopted  an 
extraordinary  costume  for  the  men  when  in  full  dress,  which 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS  595 


would  appear  to  have  been  imitated  from  the  clothing-  of  Euro- 
pean women  one  hundred  and  fifty  or  sixty  years  ago,  though 
the  resemblance  may  be  quite  accidental.  Pictures  in  Henrique 
de  Carvalho’s  Eth- 
nographia  e His- 
toria  of  the  Lunda 
Empire  show 
various  chiefs  and 
potentates  dressed 
in  skirts,  bodices, 
and  caps,  like  Euro- 
pean women  of  the 
lower  classes  in  the 
middle  nineteenth 
century. 

Li  vingstone  was 
received  in  1868 
by  the  Kazembe  of 
Mweru  and  found 
this  Lunda  viceroy  dressed  like  a woman  in  ample  blue  and 
white  cotton  skirts  and  cape,  with  a crown  of  yellow  feathers. 

As  the  Kazembe  had 
been  lono-  uninfluenced 
by  Lunda  fashions 
(the  separated  satrapy 
being  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  years 
old,  at  least),  this  cos- 
tume must  be  tolerably 
ancient. 

The  full  dress  ot 
the  Bakuba  chiefs  is 
illustrated  on  page  596. 
In  this  case  the  skirts 
are  not  particularly  un- 
manly, and  are  rather 
gracefully  disposed. 
All  the  common  peo- 
ple in  this  region 
content  themselves 
with  a mere  loin-cloth  or  a piece  of  furred  skin.  The  women 
are  much  less  clothed  than  the  men,  even  in  the  higher  classes. 
In  Livingstone’s  day  the  Alunda  women  and  girls  appeared  to 
be  nearly  nude.  Now  they  usually  wear  a short  apron  in  front. 


314.  BUSTLE  OF  PALM  FIBRE  WORN  BY  BANGALA 
WOMEN,  NORTHERN  CONGO 


313.  BANGALA  WOMAN’S  SKIRT  (MADE  OF  RAPHIA 
PALM  FIBRE) 


596  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Women  of  importance  add  to  this  a long  strip  of  calico  behind, 
which  depends  from  the  girdle,  and  a short  strip  of  calico  or  of 
leopard  skin  over  the  breasts. 

In  the  eastern  part  of  the  Congo  State , the  Zanzibar- Arab 

fashions  of  dress  — long 
white  shirts  and  other 
flowing  draperies  — are 
obtaining  an  increasing 
hold  over  the  people,  and 
constitute  certainly  — be- 
yond all  question  — the 
most  picturesque  and  ap- 
propriate costume  which 
could  be  adopted.  In 
fact,  whatever  we  may  do 
about  religious  principles, 
the  sumptuary  fashions  of 
the  Muhammadan  world 
ought  to  be  placed  in- 
sistently before  the  negro 
and  negress  resident  in 
Africa.  They  suit  these 
people  admirably,  making 
them  both  dignified  and 
good-looking. 

The  use  of  skins  for 
clothing  is  non-existent 
over  a great  part  of  the 
Congo  basin,  with  little 
or  no  tradition  to  show 
that  it  ever  did  exist  as  a 
means  of  coverinof,  after 
total  nudity  had  been 
given  up.  It  would  rather 
seem  that  in  the  forest 
regions  of  West -Central 
Africa  leaves  and  bast 
were  the  first  substances 
used  for  this  purpose. 

But  feathers,  tufts  of  hair  from  various  beasts  have  entered 
largely  into  Congo  adornments,  while  the  idea  of  the  sporran — 
aTragment,  large  or  small,  of  furred  skin  hung  in  front  of  the 
lower  abdomen  (generally  over  some  other  covering)  has  been  a 
fairly  frequent  custom  amongst  the  men.  At  the  present  day, 


315.  A MUKUBA  CHIEF  (SANKURU  RIVER)  IN 
FULL  DRESS 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


597 


aprons  of  the  black  and  white  Colobus  monkey  skin  are  worn  by 
the  Nyamnyam.  Amongst  other  peoples  of  the  west  or  north- 
east it  is  a genet  skin  or  that  of  the  Forest  Cat  ( Felis  aurata). 
In  the  south  it  is  usually  a portion  of  a goat  or  small  antelope’s 
skin,  but  the  very  striking  black  and  white  pelt  of  the  Colobus 
monkey  crops  up  again  and  again,  and  is  often  used  by  medicine- 
men for  their  adornments. 

Mention  has  already  been  made  of  the  Baloi  “sleeveless 
waistcoats  ” of  buffalo  hide.  Grenfell  traced  the  use  of  this 
armature  as  far  up  the  Mubangi  as  \°  8'  N.  Lat.  Curiously 


* 


I ■ 
* 


316.  (i)  CAP  FROM  CONGO  COAST  REGION,  MADE  OF  DRIED  GRASS.  (2)  WAR 
HEAD-DRESS  OF  FEATHERS  FROM  THE  UPPER  CONGO 

enough,  the  same  “corselet”  of  dressed  buffalo  hide  is  met  with 
amongst  the  western  Babira,  the  Balese , and  other  Forest  tribes 
of  the  north-east  (upper  Aruwimi  basin). 

Feather  head-dresses  are  commoner  in  the  east  than  in  the 
west.  They  reach  their  culmination  probably  in  the  forest 
region  between  the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika  and  the  Lualaba- 
Congo.  There  may  be  seen  in  the  British  Museum  a stupen- 
dous head-dress  collected  by  myself  from  the  west  coast  of 
Tanganyika,1  which  is  composed  of  hundreds  of  scarlet  feathers 
from  the  tails  of  Grey  Parrots.  It  is  really  a magnificent 
piece  of  work,  and  was  said  to  have  been  worn  by  great  chiefs 

1 It  was  brought  to  me  by  natives  from  the  regions  north-west  of  the  lake. 


598  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

in  ceremonial  dances.  Smaller  caps  of  the  same  style  are 
frequently  sent  home  from  this  region  and  also  from  the 
northern  Congo.  Feather  head-dresses  are  worn  by  some  of 
the  people  on  the  lower  Aruwimi.  They  were  even  used  by 
the  late  Kazembe,  a Lunda  potentate  of  Lake  Mweru. 

As  regards  other  head-gear , tall  hats  woven  of  basket-work 
used  to  be  very  fashionable  amongst  the  Bayanzi  chiefs.  They 
are  illustrated  in  my  portrait  cf  Ibaka.  The  Babuma,  both 


317.  A CEREMONIAL  CAP  OF  THE  WESTERN  BAYAKA  PEOPLE  (KWANGO  RIVER), 
MADE  OF  FIBRE  AND  STRING 

men  and  women,  would  sometimes  affix  a flat  brass  plate  to 
the  top  of  their  hair.  The  square  cap  of  the  Manbettu  has 
been  already  described.  The  great  flapping  straw  hat  of  the 
Sudan  (which  in  slightly  varying  fashions  ranges  from  the  south 
of  Tunis  to  the  interior  of  Lagos)  has  penetrated  parts  of 
Northern  Congoland  amongst  the  Nyamnyam  and  the  Nsakara. 
But  except  where  European  fashions  have  been  introduced 
amongst  the  Lunda  or  Kioko  peoples  in  the  south-west,  the 
Congoland  negroes  as  a rule  do  not  much  affect  covering  for  the 
head.  It  is  very  rare  also  to  see  them  decorate  the  hair  with 
feathers  as  is  done  in  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa.  The  Imban- 


ARTIFICIAL  ADORNMENTS 


599 


gala  of  the  middle  Kwango  used  to  wear  striking  head-dresses 

o o o 

of  Colobus  monkey  skin,  black  and  white,  and  these  seem  to 
have  been  recorded  by  Grenfell  from  the  Lomami  and  perhaps 
the  Lulongo-Maringo.1 * * *  They  also  appear  sometimes  to  be 
made  of  different  and  red-coloured  monkeys  amongst  the  vari- 
ous tribes  of  the  north-east.  The  Alunda  men  wear  wig-like 
caps  or  cap-like  wigs,  made  seemingly  of  hair,  plaited  fibre, 
grease,  and  soot,  with  excrescent  tufts  and  horns,  ornamented 
with  beads  or  kauri  shells. 

As  to  foot-gear , sandals  are  almost  unknown  amongst  the 
aboriginal  Congo  natives.  The  Bakongo  and  the  Baluba  have 

o o 


^ . ^ 

5 1 8.  A HORNED  CAP  FROM  THE  UPPER  rfANKURU  RIVER,  MADE  OF  STRING 
This  gives  a conventional  imitation  of  ox  horns.  (Collected  by  Captain  S.  L.  Hinde.) 


a great  fancy  for  European  boots.  So  far  the  use  of  sandals  has 
only  been  recorded  from  the  south-eastern  portion  of  the  Congo 
basin  (where  they  are  of  hide)  and  from  the  south-west  (Lunda 
plateau).  Here  they  are  only  worn  by  the  Lunda  and  Kioko 
chiefs,  and  in  some  cases  with  their  straps  or  strings  round  the 
ankle  resemble  the  classical  buskin. 


1 Also  amongst  the  Bangala  and  the  northern  Ngombe. 

“ At  Mbudza  (?  Buja),  near  Bopoto,  men  wear  tall,  conical  hats  covered  with 

monkey  skin.  Poles  are  erected  and  hung  with  skulls.  One  had  as  many  as  eight 

on  it.  They  use  scimetars  and  Rubango  knives.  There  is  plenty  of  copper  at 

Mbudza.5’  (Grenfell,  1885.) 


CHAPTER  XXIV 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING 

IT  has  already  been  pointed  out  in  this  book  and  in  other 
works  by  writers  on  tropical  Africa  that  Negroland,  especi- 
ally in  the  Congo  basin,  was  badly  supplied  with  vegetable 
food-stuffs  until  the  Portuguese  and  later  on  the  Arabs  intro- 
duced  a number  of  cultivated  cereals,  tubers,  berries,  and 
fruits  from  America  or  from  Asia  into  West  and  East  Africa. 
East  Africa,  through  the  early  trade  that  had  sprung  up  with 
India,  Arabia,  and,  earlier  still,  Egypt,  had  already  been  en- 
riched with  many  food-plants  of  Asiatic  or  European  origin. 
But  few  if  any  of  these  penetrated  into  the  Congo  basin  prior  to 
its  discovery  by  the  Portuguese.  In  fact,  down  to  the  end  of  the 
fifteenth  century  the  indigenous  food-stuffs  of  the  Congo  basin 
must  have  been  limited  to  the  banana,  the  coco-yam  (a  Colocasia 
aroid),  the  Dioscorea  yam,  and,  amongst  grains,  possibly  “millets” 
\Panicum frumentaceum , P.  sarmentosum , P.  maximum , P.  spec- 
tabile,  P.  burgu;  and  Pennisetum  typhoidcum\  sorghum  ( Andro - 
pogon),  and  eleusine,  another  millet-like  grain.  There  were  no 
sweet  potato,  tomato,  chili-pepper,  manioc,  onion,  sugar-cane, 
pineapple,  rice,1  maize,  or  tobacco  ; and  probably  no  ground-nut 
(. Arachis ).  There  may  have  been  pumpkins  and  gourds,  also 
a few  cultivated  forms  of  beans  and  peas — Phaseolus , Cicery 
Cajanus ; though  these  are  very  rarely  met  with  in  Congoland 
away  from  the  centres  of  European  or  Arab  and  Sudanese 
influence. 

Even  the  cultivation  of  the  millets  {Panicum  and  Pennise- 
tum),  eleusine,  and  sorghum — all  these  grains  except  Panicum 
not  indigenous  to  tropical  Africa — probably  did  not  exist  in  the 
central  basin  of  the  Congo  ; but  only  where  it  had  been  carried 
by  the  invading  Hamitic  organizers  of  the  eastern  Bantu  or  of 
similar  negro  tribes  in  the  park-lands  of  the  northern  Mubangi. 
No  doubt  the  greater  part  of  the  Congo  basin  was  dense  forest, 

1 A species  of  wild  grain  allied  to  rice — Zizania — is  perhaps  indigenous  to  the 
Upper  Congo,  and  is  sometimes  eaten  by  the  people  in  times  of  scarcity.  Grenfell 
refers  to  it  as  “hungry  rice.” 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  601 

except  on  the  Lunda  and  Lualaba  plateaux.  The  people  were 
much  more  carnivorous,  and  lived  very  much  as  the  Pygmies 
do  now — on  the  flesh  of  wild  mammals,  birds,  and  even  insects 
and  reptiles,  the  honey  of  the  wild  bees,  fish  in  the  rivers,  fungi 
(which  are  most  abundant,  appetizing,  and  wholesome  in  the 
great  forests),  bananas,  and  the  seeds,  roots,  and  tubers  of  wild 
plants  now  neglected  by  the  much  more  fastidious  peoples  of  to- 
day. Of  course  in  the  regions  north  of  the  sixth  degree  of  South 
Latitude  and  the  south  of  the  third  degree  of  North  Latitude 
there  was  the  oil  palm,  which  furnished  the  natives  with  an 
appetizing,  nourishing  fat  from  its  nuts  and  a delicious  vegetable 
in  the  heart  of  the  palm.  The  coconut  palm  on  the  coast 


319.  CEREMONIAL  DECORATED  WIG  OR  CAP  WORN  BY  THE  BAKWESE  PEOPLE, 
SOUTH-CENTRAL  CONGOLAND  (TORDAY  COLLECTION) 


seems  to  have  been  introduced  by  the  Portuguese.  The  negroes 
of  course  obtained  in  abundance  the  sweet,  palatable,  and 
nutritious  sap  of  the  oil  palm,  the  raphia,  and  the  borassus. 
The  leaves  of  Portulaca  and  other  wild  vegetables  were  boiled 
and  turned  into  spinach. 

Even  at  the  present  day  the  Congo  basin  has  greatly 
benefited  by  the  incoming  of  the  European  as  regards  improved 
food-supplies.  For  example,  rice  was  practically  unknown  in 
the  central  basin  of  the  Congo  (though  there  is  a kind  of  wild 
rice,  Zizania , of  poor  quality,  apparently  indigenous  to  the 
rivers  of  the  northern  territories)  until  the  German  ex- 
plorer Dr.  Pogge  introduced  it  in  1875  or  1876.  It  is  now 
cultivated  in  all  directions  by  the  Bashilange,  many  of  the 
Baluba  people,  the  Bakuba,  and  the  Bakusu.  About  the  same 


602  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


time  the  Manyema  and  the  populations  of  the  Lualaba  received 
rice  seed  from  the  Zanzibar  Arabs,  and  it  is  crown  in  enormous 
quantities  up  and  down  the  Lualaba-Congo  and  in  parts  of  the 
Lomami  basin. 

The  sugar-cane  ( Saccharum ) was  introduced  by  the  Portu- 
guese on  the  west  from  Brazil  and  the  Arabs1  on  the  east,  and 
is  now  found  far  and  wide  over  the  Congo  basin.  The  extra- 
ordinary  growth  of  the  pineapple  from  the  West  Coast  inwards 
has  been  already  mentioned  in  various  chapters.  It  has  found 
a new  home  in  South-Central  Congoland. 

The  spread  of  both  maize  and  tobacco  is  one  of  the 
wonders  of  ethnology,  tobacco  perhaps  most  wonderful  of  all. 
This  plant  cannot  have  been  introduced  by  the  Portuguese  to 
the  West  Coast  of  Africa  until  well  towards  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  because  it  was  long  before  it  caught  on  as  a 
narcotic  with  Europeans.  In  fact,  it  is  probably  not  inaccurate 
to  maintain  that  the  Portuguese  cannot  have  made  any  serious 
attempt  to  acclimatize  tobacco  on  the  coast  of  Guinea,  Kongo, 
and  Angola  before  the  beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century. 
Yet — so  far  as  we  can  guess  from  native  traditions  and  by  the 
observations  of  early  European  explorers — between  1600  and 
1800,  tobacco  must  have  penetrated  almost  everywhere  into  the 
innermost  recesses  of  the  Congo  basin  as  well  as  elsewhere 
throughout  negro  Africa.  In  the  majority  of  cases  it  has  kept 
its  name — something  like  taba — in  the  most  of  the  languages 
of  the  people  who  use  it.  But  it  has  already  started  indi- 
genous varieties  ; and  those  who  had  not  carefully  studied  the 
history  of  the  tobacco  plant  would  swear  that  it  was  indigenous 
[like  one  or  more  species  of  cotton]  to  tropical  Africa.  Even 
as  regards  the  cotton  plant,  it  is  curious  to  know  that  the  species 
most  widely  spread  in  native  cultivation  seem  to  be  American, 
and  not  the  one  or  two  indigenous  African  types. 

Wild  coffee  was  first  discovered  by  Grenfell  on  the  lower 
Sanga  and  lower  Mubangi  rivers.  It  is  found  principally  in 
the  northern  part  of  the  Congo  basin  within  the  forest  belt. 
So  far  as  I am  aware,  no  species  of  wild  coffee  has  yet  been 
found  indigenous  to  the  south  of  the  main  Congo.  It  seems  to 
be  a species  characteristic  of  the  true  Equatorial  forest  belt  of 
West  Africa,  with  an  extension  to  Abyssinia  and  westwards  to 
the  River  Senegal. 


1 The  Zanzibari  Arabs  may  also  have  introduced  from  the  Zanzibar  coast  (whither 
it  came  from  India)  the  sweet  sorghum  which  is  sometimes  cultivated  on  Tanganyika 
— Andropogon  saccharatum.  The  sugar-yielding  Panicum  burgii  which  reaches  south 
to  the  northern  Mubangi  may  be  indigenous  to  the  Sudan. 


320.  EXPERIMENTAL  VEGETABLE  GARDEN  AND  NURSERY  AT  BOPOTO,  NORTHERN  CONGO  (REV.  WILLIAM  FORFEITT) 


LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  605 

Manioc  ( Manihot  utilissima)  [the  tuberous  roots  of  an 
Euphorbiaceous  plant],  introduced  by  the  Portuguese  also  about 
1600  and  better  known  to  us  under  the  name  of  “tapioca/’ 
has  now  become  the  staple  food  of  all  Western  Congoland.  It 
penetrates,  of  course,  right  across  to  the  coast  of  the  Indian 
Ocean,  but  east  of  Longitude  240  rather  gives  way  to  sorghum 
grain  as  a staple  of  food.  Its  use  in  the  form  known  as  kwanga 
has  already  been  referred  to.  This  is  or  was  the  staple  food  of 
the  riverain  peoples  of  the  Upper  Congo.  The  root,  after  being 
well  washed  to  get  rid  of  its  inherent  prussic  acid  [there  are 
two  forms  of  manioc,  one  (M.  utilissima ),  the  semi-poisonous, 
is  bitter,  and  the  other  (M.  palmata)  is  sweet  and  wholesome 
and  does  not  require  washing],  was  ground  into  a white  flour 


SALE  (MOUTH  OF  LOMAMl) 

and  then  mixed  with  water  till  it  formed  a stiff  dough.  This 
was  made  up  into  rolls  of  sausage  shape  (or  large  round  balls), 
wrapped  in  banana  leaves,  and  boiled. 

The  root  before  being  made  into  flour  is  not  only  soaked 
for  three  days  in  fresh  water,  but  is  boiled  and  dried  in  the 
sun.  Manioc  leaves  are  sometimes  boiled  and  eaten  as  a 
spinach. 

The  tall  sorghum  (. Andropogon  sorghum — in  many  African 
varieties) — sometimes  growing  to  nine  or  ten  feet  in  height — 
has  a robust,  knotty  stalk  as  thick  as  a finger,  and  alternate, 
drooping,  sword-like  leaves.  The  ear  of  corn  is  a little  like  a 
diminutive  cob  of  maize,  with  the  seeds  more  numerous  and 
growing  less  closely  to  the  main  stem.  The  grains  are  the 
size  and  shape  of  flattened  buckshot.  They  are  smooth,  shiny, 
with  a tough  husk,  and  in  colour  are  glistening  white  or  pale 


606  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


pink.  Other  varieties  are  almost  black  when  ripe,  or  are  a 
bright  red.  The  special  red  sorghum  of  Angola  is  cultivated 
eastwards  as  far  as  Katanga.  In  that  country  sorghum  is 
planted  at  the  beginning  of  the  rainy  season  (October- Novem- 
ber). It  is  ripe  in  May,  but  is  left  standing  for  two  or  three 
weeks  until  it  dries.  The  harvest  is  usually  gathered  by  women, 
who  bend  the  long  stalks  down  and  snip  off  the  ear  of  corn. 
When  these  have  been  thoroughly  dried  in  the  sun,  the  grains 
are  rubbed  off  and  are  piled  in  granaries  of  wickerwork  plastered 
with  clay  or  mud. 

Sorghum  grain,  usually  pounded  in  stone  mortars,  produces 
coarse,  impure  flour,  as  it  is  difficult  to  separate  the  husk  from 
the  grain  with  the  means  at  the  disposal  of  the  natives.  As 
this  hour  does  not  rise,  it  cannot  be  used  for  bread,  so  the 
negroes  make  a kind  of  porridge  of  it,  to  which  other  things  are 
added,  such  as  beans,  peas,  palm  oil,  ground-nuts,  animal  fat, 
okroes  (the  buds  of  a mallow,  Hibiscus — possibly  indigenous), 
or  small  pieces  of  meat. 

The  taste  of  sorghum  dour  is  fairly  agreeable,  but  it  is  very 
coarse-grained,  and  appears  to  be  peculiarly  unwholesome  for 
Europeans,  provoking  intestinal  disorders  resembling  dysentery. 
It  is  said  that  this  is  due  to  the  coarse  dour  being  mixed  up 
with  minute  particles  of  granite  from  the  hollowed  stone  in 
which  it  is  ground. 

Millets  of  various  species  of  Panicum  are  but  little  cultivated 
except  in  the  north  and  east,  chiedy  in  the  valley  of  the  Wele- 
Mubangi,  along  the  coasts  of  Tanganyika,  and  in  the  country  of 
Katanga.  These  grains  are  even  less  cultivated  in  Congoland 
than  sorghum  or  eleusine  ; as  a rule,  the  natives  merely  plant 
them  to  make  the  grain  into  beer ; but  this  practice  is  entirely 
foreign  to  the  forest-dwelling  negroes,  who  make  their  beer  out 
of  bananas — if,  indeed,  they  are  not  content  with  the  ordinary 
palm  wine.  It  is  not  until  one  has  passed  beyond  the  limits  of 
the  Congo  basin  into  the  Egyptian  Sudan  or  possibly  German 
East  Africa  that  the  millets  become  of  importance  amongst  the 
cultivated  grains.  Numerous  wild  millets  are  indigenous  to 
West  and  East  Africa,  some  growing  to  a height  of  dfteen  feet. 

Eleusine,  which  in  appearance  is  more  like  the  “millet” 
sold  for  bird-seed,  appears  to  be  condned  in  its  distribution  to 
the  cultivated  park-lands  of  the  Congo  outside  the  region  of 
dense  forests. 

The  cultivation  of  ground-nuts  is  pretty  well  distributed  over 
the  whole  of  the  Congo  basin  except  in  the  densest  forests. 
In  some  parts  also  the  voandzeia  has  been  introduced  from  the 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  607 

north  and  east  [the  Bayanzi  grow  it].  This  ground-nut  is  said 
to  be  of  Madagascar  origin. 

Beans  and  peas  (. Phaseolus , Dolichos , Cajanus , Cicer)  are 
likewise  only  found  in  the  more  or  less  well-cultivated  coast- 
lands  or  open  park-like  country  away  from  the  great  forests. 
They  are  probably  of  eastern  origin,  and  a relatively  old  intro- 
duction into  the  Congo  basin.  In  Portuguese  Congo  the  Portu- 
guese have  introduced  their  favourite  haricot  bean,  which  forms 
the  great  national  dish  of  Portugal  (feijao). 

Sugar-cane  before  ever  Stanley  discovered  the  Congo  was 
widely  cultivated  up  and  down  the  course  of  that  river  and  its 
great  affluents,  though  it  may  be  no  older  in  use  than  the 
beginning  of  the  seventeenth  century.  The  riverain  peoples  of 
the  Con^o  and  its  tributaries  make  a fermented  drink  out  of  the 
juice  of  the  sugar-cane.  The  canes  are  pounded  in  a large 
mortar  made  of  a hollow  tree  trunk.  The  product  of  the  crushed 
cane  is  then  passed  through  the  fibres  gathered  from  a palm 
tree,  which  serve  as  a strainer.  The  juice  after  fermentation 
and  the  admixture  of  water  is  bottled  in  earthenware  vessels  or 
glass  bottles  derived  from  Europeans.  The  Bashilange  excel 
in  making  a kind  of  sugar-cane  wine,  which  is  declared  excel- 
lent. 

Gourds  ( L agenaria)  and  pumpkins  ( Cucurbita ) are  much 
cultivated  everywhere,  the  former  as  receptacles.  The  empty 
husk  of  the  bottle-shaped  gourd  is  an  indispensable  utensil — 
whole,  or  neatly  cut  in  half — of  even  the  most  elementary 
Congo  civilization  above  the  Pygmy  standard. 

The  Kola  nut  (in  a cultivated  state  and  growing  on  a comely 
tree)  is  found  in  all  Northern  and  Western  Congoland,  as  far 
south  as  about  6°  S.  Lat.  and  perhaps  eastward  to  Tanganyika 
and  the  upper  Aruwimi.  The  nut  is  chiefly  valued  in  Western 
Congoland  as  an  aphrodisiac.  It  is  not  as  much  used  or  valued, 
however,  as  in  Western  Nigeria. 

Sweet  potatoes  ( ' Ipomcea  batatas ),  the  tuber  of  a South 
American  convolvulus,  are  a good  deal  cultivated  in  Western 
Congoland  and  in  the  Mubangi-Wele  basin.  The  Zanzibaris 
have  greatly  increased  the  cultivation  of  this  plant  in  the  east 
(Manyema,  Aruwimi,  Lomami,  Tanganyika). 

Hemp  was  introduced  into  Central  Africa  by  the  Arabs 
probably  before  tobacco  came  in  the  footsteps  of  the  Portuguese, 
and  hemp-smoking,  originating  in  Asia,  prepared  the  way  for 
the  smoking  of  tobacco. 

Hemp  as  a narcotic  is  not  much  used  in  the  Congo  basin 
except  in  the  southern,  south-western,  and  south-central 


608  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


parts,1  and  on  the  western  Mubangi.  This  practice  has  nearly 
died  out  in  the  kingdom  of  Kongo,  though  it  was  prevalent  once. 
Of  late  years  hemp-smoking  has  developed  in  a rather  sensa- 
tional fashion  amoncr  the  excitable  Bashilanee,  a Luba-like 
tribe  dwelling  between  the  eastern  Lulua  and  the  upper 
Sankuru. 

The  Bashilange  are  described  by  Torday  as  “clean,  tall, 
and  of  good  bearing  . . . much  attached  to  the  Whites,  anxious 
to  learn,  eager  for  the  products  of  Europe ; but  unhappily 


abandoned  to  the  terrible  habit  ot  hemp-smoking,  which 
brutalizes  them  and  makes  them  incapable  of  progress.”  Hemp- 
smoking amongst  these  people  became — as  far  back  as  the 
’seventies  of  the  last  century — a vice  associated  with  semi- 
religious “ Masonic  ” societies,  calling  themselves  “ Bena 
Diamba ” 2=  Brothers  (of  the)  Hemp. 

Excessive  abuse  of  this  drug-  led  to  an  almost  national 

o 


1 The  practice — still  very  common  in  German  East  Africa,  Nyasaland,  Portuguese 
East  Africa,  and  Zambezia — must  have  existed  at  one  time  in  the  north  and  north-east 
of  Congoland  and  along  the  course  of  the  main  Congo,  to  account  for  some  of  the 
forms  of  pipes  found  there,  pipes  afterwards  adapted  for  tobacco. 

2 This  is  given  in  most  books  as  “ Bena  Z?iamba.”  R is  rare  as  an  original  initial 
consonant  in  Bantu  Africa  and  is  often  a European  or  Arab  mishearing  of  the  Bantu 
d or  /.  Bena  means  “ brothers  ” not  {band)  “ children.” 


322.  MANIOC  PLANTS 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  609 


movement  against  it : other  secret  societies  were  formed  to 

o 


combat  the 
potence,  it 
population 


vice.  As  excessive  hemp-smoking  produces  im- 
is  one  among  the  many  checks  to  the  increase  of 
in  uncontrolled  negro  Africa. 

Congo 

o 


more 

pipes 


Tobacco  fortunately  produces 
peoples.  It  is 
everywhere  culti- 
vated (except  by 
the  dwarfs,  who 
nevertheless  love 
it),  and  is 
smoked  in 
than  taken  as  snuff 
— co mpared  to 
East  Africa,  where- 
in snuff-taking  pre- 
dominates  over 
smoking.1 

o 

Among  the 
Forest  tribes  of 
Eastern  and 
N orth - Easter n 
Congoland  the 
stem  of  the  banana 
leaf  is  used 


no  ill  effects  on  the 


long  tobacco-pipe 
in  the  manner  de- 
scribed and  illus- 
trated in  my  work 
on  the  Uganda 
Protectorate.  In 
the  centre  it  is  the 
midrib  of  the 
raphia  palm. 


323.  (i)  NATIVE  PIPE  (UPPER  CONGO).  (2)  CARVED 
BUFFALO  HORN  FOR  STORING  TOBACCO,  HEMP, 
OR  OTHER  DRUGS  (KASAl).  (3)  SNUFF-BOX  OF  THE 
BAKWESE,  WORN  SOMETIMES  IN  THE  EAR-LOBE 


“ It  is  a matter  of 
gratification,”  writes 

Grenfell,  “ that  the  international  prohibition  of  the  importation  and 
sale  of  intoxicating  liquors  in  the  interior  Congo  basin  has  been  so 
effectively  executed.  There  is  relatively  little  drunkenness  amongst 
the  natives.  The  sap  of  the  oil  palm  which  makes  the  famous  palm 
wine  is  usually  mild  and  innocuous,  and  only  when  fermented  is  it 


1 The  Ba-mbala  take  snuff  in  profusion  as  well  as  smoking  tobacco  in  a pipe.  The 
men  have  the  upper  lip  so  thickly  plastered  with  snuff  that  it  gives  them  the  appear- 
ance of  wearing  a green  moustache.  (Torday.) 

11. — I 


610  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

sufficiently  alcoholic  to  intoxicate.  The  impatience  of  the  natives  to 
drink  it  as  soon  as  possible  prevents  much  of  this  fermentation,  and  the 
juice  is  very  much  like  fresh  apple  cider.” 

Nevertheless  a vast  deal  of  harm  has  been  and  is  being 

Q 

done  on  the  Lower  Congo  and  the  Kakongo  coast  by  German 
gin,  Portuguese  rum,  bad  French  brandy,  and  vile  British 
whisky.  The  Sudanese  in  the  far  north  and  north-east  are 


324.  A NATIVE  OF  UPPER  CONG«  CLIMBING  OIL  PALM  TO  OBTAIN  PALM  WINE 

teaching  the  natives  to  distil  a very  powerful  arrack  from  mead, 
palm  wine,  banana  juice,  or  grain  beer. 

Grenfell’s  statement,  however,  that  there  is  relatively  little- 
drunkenness  amongst  the  Congo  negroes  must  be  taken  to 
mean  intoxication  of  the  dangerous,  murderous  character  pro- 
duced by  the  poisons  issued  for  human  consumption  by  the 
distilleries  of  Europe  and  America.  There  is  much  insobriety 
of  a Bacchic  kind  throughout  all  negro  Africa,  especially  in 
the  Congo  basin.1  The  Pygmies,  with  rare  exceptions,  make 

1 Grenfell’s  own  references  to  palm-wine  tipsiness  and  drinking  bouts  are  many 
when  writing  of  Babangi  and  Bangala.  Other  Baptist  missionaries  have  referred  to 
the  drunkenness  of  the  Basoko  (Aruwimi  confluence),  “ who  drink  an  enormous  quan- 
tity of  palm  wine.”  Torday  writes  of  the  “continual  intoxication  of  the  Bambala,” 
Verner  of  the  drunken  brawls  among  the  Bena  Lulua. 


named  affords  the  most  delicious  drink  (when  fresh) — like  sweet 
cider.  Palm  wine  that  has  fermented  and  been  kept  for  some 
time,  evaporating  and  almost  undergoing  a natural  distillation,  is 
scarcely  to  be  distinguished  from  a powerful  liqueur,  like  kirsch, 
and  is  very  intoxicating. 

The  Bakongo  and  Eshi-kongo  make  a fermented  liquor  (a 
beer ) from  maize  and  manioc.  The  maize  is  malted  by  the 
encouragement  of  germination  and  then  by  drying  in  the  sun 
the  sprouting  grains.  A mash  of  manioc  roots  is  mixed  with 
the  malted  maize  and  a sufficient  proportion  of  water,  is  boiled, 
strained,  and  left  to  cool.  It  is  then  drunk  as  a sweet,  non- 
intoxicating beverage  ; but  after  being  allowed  to  ferment  it 
becomes  sour  and  heady. 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  611 

and  take  no  fermented  liquor,  but  all  the  other  races  indulge 
moderately  or  immoderately  in  some  form  of  wine,  beer,  or 
mead. 

The  fermented  juice  of  the  sugar-cane  has  been  already 
referred  to.  It  is  chiefly  used  on  the  western  Upper  Congo, 
lower  Mubangi,  the  Kasai,  and  Sankuru.  The  use  of  malafu 
or  malebu,  “palm  wine,”  is  universal.  It  is  derived  from  the 
abundant  sap  of  the  oil  palm,  raphia,  or  borassus.  The  first- 


325.  OIL  PALMS  IN  A BAYANZI  VILLAGE 


6 1 2 GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


A sweet  and  intoxicating  beer  is  made  from  bananas  or 
plantains  by  the  Ababua  of  North  Congoland,  and  probably  by 
all  the  tribes  of  the  north-eastern  forest-lands.1 

Mead  is  a favourite  drink  among  the  Nyamnyam  and  their 
subject  peoples  in  North  Congoland,  especially  along  the  middle 
Mubangi-Wele.  Honey  is  mixed  with  water  in  big  pots  and 
left  to  ferment.  Honey  is  also  mixed  with  beer  made  from 
millet.  But  these  honey  drinks  are  really  foreign  to  Congoland, 
and  are  recent  Sudanese  introductions. 

One  does  not  hear  much  of  honey  being  obtained  and  eaten 
in  Central  Congoland  and  the  densely  forested  regions.  Honey 
only  becomes  prominent 2 as  an  obtainable  and  sought-after 
article  in  native  diet  outside  the  former  area  of  the  great  Congo 
Lake,  where  the  land  rises  above  2,000  feet  in  altitude. 

The  honey  bees  of  the  Nyamnyam  country  are  like  the 
Ligurian  and  may  be  the  same. 

The  Manbettu  also  possess  this  type  of  bee,  which  makes 
innumerable  hives  in  the  wooded  hills  of  their  country.  The 
Barambo,  Momvu,  Mayogot  of  the  Wele-Kibali  valley  are  all 
fond  of  honey,  but  with  the  Manbettu  honey-eating  is  a passion. 

In  most  Congo  regions  the  natives  eat  not  only  honey 
and  wax,  but  also — and  with  gusto — the  bee  grubs. 


1 In  all  probability  there  are  only  plantains  in  this  northern  and  north-eastern 
region.  “ Plantain  ” means  the  long,  ribbed,  curved  banana,  probably  indigenous  as 
a cultivated  type  to  West-Central  Africa.  ‘‘  Banana”  stands  for  the  short,  fat,  smooth- 
skinned,  very  sweet  fruit  seemingly  introduced  by  the  Portuguese  from  tropical 
America.  This  is  never  met  with  in  tropical  Africa  away  from  the  influence,  ancient 
or  modern,  of  the  Arab  or  European.  The  word  “ banana  ’’  seems  to  have  been 
borrowed  by  the  Portuguese  from  the  negroes  of  Sierra  Leone  and  West  Liberia  when 
those  coasts  were  first  discovered.  A cultivated  banana  or  plantain  arose  in  Northern 
Asia  from  the  indigenous  wild  types,  and  seems  to  have  spread  in  several  varieties  to 
tropical  America  (?  before  the  intervention  of  the  white  man).  There  are  indigenous 
wild  bananas  ( Musa  ensete  and  other  types)  in  tropical  Africa,  from  Abyssinia  to 
Senegal  and  to  South-East  Africa,  but  they  are  usually  confined  to  districts  of  a 
certain  elevation,  and  do  not  grow  in  the  great  forests  nor  much  above  sea-level. 
Whether  the  long  plantains  of  negro  Africa  are  developed  from  a wild  indigenous 
type  (all  the  wild  forms  have  short , stumpy  fruit),  or  whether  they  were  introduced  to 
this  continent  from  tropical  Asia  by  prehistoric  Arabs,  Malays,  Persians,  is  one  of 
Africa’s  many  unsolved  problems.  Linguistic  researches  show  that  this  cultivated 
plantain  (though  not  the  short-fruited  banana)  has  been  familiar  to  the  negro  of 
Central  Africa  for  many  hundreds  of  years,  perhaps  prior  to  the  Great  Bantu  Dis- 
persion some  two  to  three  thousand  years  ago. 

At  the  present  day  in  Western  Congoland  (Bakongo  and  coast  region)  there  are 
often  eight  varieties  of  cultivated  banana  ; including  (1)  the  ordinary,  not  very  sweet, 
rather  long,  curved  plantain ; (2)  a variety  of  this — found  also  on  the  north-east  and 
east  of  Congoland — curved,  ribbed,  and  very  long  (twelve  to  twenty-four  inches);  (3)  a 
red-skinned  sweet  banana  (?  West  Indian) ; and  (4,  5,  6,  7,8)  various  kinds  of  short , 
sweet  bananas,  supposed,  like  the  red  one,  to  have  been  introduced  by  the  Portuguese. 
Only  Nos.  1 and  2 seem  to  exist  away  in  the  districts  unaffected  by  intercourse  with 
Portuguese  or  Arabs. 

2 To  some  degree  it  exists  everywhere,  and  there  is  a word  for  honey  in  every 
negro  language. 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  613 


They  are,  in  fact,  great  insect-eaters.  The  male  termites 
(“white  ants”)  as  they  issue  from  the  nest  in  thousands  are 
a delicacy  universally  devoured,  and  often  figuring  in  legends 
and  folk-lore  as  sweetmeats  would  in  European  stories.  Locusts 
are  also  eaten.  The  large,  white  grubs  of  a palm-boring  beetle 
are  considered  good,  even  dainty  food.  Grenfell’s  notes  on  pages 
143,  198  illustrate  the  fondness  of  the  Mongo  and  Ngombe 
tribes  for  certain  caterpillars.  Even  the  much  more  civilized 
Bakongo  include  two  kinds  of  caterpillars  in  their  dietary. 

Fish  are  in  almost  universal  demand,  are  in  fact  the  main 
staple  of  food  amongst  the  Congo  peoples,  except  on  the  Lunda 
plateau  and 
the  mountain- 
ous regions  of 
the  south-east 
and  east  (the 
fish  of  the 
mountain 
streams  being 
small  and 
bony).  This 
must  be  ob- 
vious from  the 
magnificen  t 
fish  fauna  of 
the  Congo. 

Fish  is  cured, 
by  drying  and 
smoking,  on 
the  islands  of 

Stanley  Pool  and  all  the  way  up  the  main  Congo,  Kasai,  and  the 
navigable  reaches  of  the  other  great  affluents,  and  is  then  an 
important  article  of  commerce  inland.  When  it  finally  reaches 
the  consumer  the  smoked  fish  may  be  full  of  maggots,  which 
does  not  in  the  least  detract  from  its  value. 

Fresh- water  oysters  ( FEtheria ) and  crayfish  are  much  liked, 
and  land  crabs  are  also  eaten,  though  more  rarely. 

Frogs  of  the  bull-frog  type  are  eaten  by  some  tribes — or  by 
the  women  of  the  tribe — but  are  violently  rejected  by  others  on 
the  plea  that  the  consumption  of  a frog  will  make  the  eyes 
bulge.  The  flesh  of  land — or  water — tortoises  is  not  disliked  : 
one  kind  is  eagerly  sought  after,  probably  a Trionyx.  Crocodile 
flesh  is  in  some  districts  eaten  greedily  ; in  others  it  is  eschewed 
for  fetish istic  reasons  or  because  of  some  vague  totem  tradition. 


326.  A COVERED  POT  FROM  THE  CONGO  COAST  REGION 
IN  WHICH  MAIZE  AND  MANIOC  BEER  IS  SOMETIMES 
KEPT 


614  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  small,  short-headed  crocodile  ( Osteolcemus ) of  the  Mubangi 
is  eagerly  devoured,  and  is  said  even  to  be  kept  in  enclosed 
pools  and  bred  for  consumption. 

In  fact  most  of  the  Congo  peoples  are  nearly  omnivorous,  only 
abstaining  from  any  form  of  flesh,1  fowl,1  fish,  or  even  reptile  for 
fantastic  reasons  related  to  a vanished  totemism  or  to  some  local 
prejudice  or  superstition.  Certain  fish  are  thought  to  produce 
itching  diseases  or  leprosy.  The  prejudice  against  frogs  has 
already  been  explained.  The  Nyamnyam  are  said  to  have  im- 
ported from  the  north  a superstitious  dislike  to  eating  hares, 
but  as  the  hare  is  absent  from  all  the  forested  parts  of  the  Congo 
basin  it  loses  its  mystical  importance  in  the  eyes  of  the  Congo 
negroes  in  favour  of  a small  type  of  antelope 
or  the  Dorcatherium. 

There  is  also  a selfish  sexual  tabu  en- 
forced to  the  disadvantage  of  the  women. 

Amongst  the  Bayaka  fowls  and  eggs  are 
forbidden  to  women  as  articles  of  food. 
Amongst  the  men  a male  fowfl  must  be 
eaten  by  one  man  alone,  but  a hen  must  be 
shared  by  several. 

Amongst  many  of  the  western  tribes 
( teste  Grenfell,  Bentley,  and  Torday)  women 
are  forbidden  to  eat  owls — not  so  serious  a 
deprivation,  however,  as  fowls.  Nearly 
everywhere  women  are  inhibited  from  eat- 
ing human  flesh,  a restriction  they  quietly 
evade  when  it  suits  their  purpose.  The  eastern  Bayanzi  dis- 
approve of  chiefs  eating  human  flesh,  and  it  is  not  considered 
in  good  taste  to  eat  one’s  own  relations  or  persons  who  have 
died  a natural  death. 

The  comely  Ababua  of  Northern  Congoland,  besides  being 
ardent  cannibals,  eat  rats,  locusts,  lizards,  snakes,  some  insects, 
and  crocodiles,  regarding  the  latter  as  dainties.  The  eating  of 
hippopotami  is,  however,  strictly  prohibited,  and  in  some  sub- 
tribes there  is  a tabu  on  gorillas  and  leopards. 

Dogs,  though  they  are  valued  as  an  auxiliary  in  hunting 
[Central  African — negro — dogs  are  of  but  little  use  as  guards  : 
they  cannot  bark,  and  are  afraid  to  bite],  are  even  better  loved 
as  an  article  of  diet,  ranking  only  second  to  that  obsession  of 
the  Congo  palate — human  flesh. 

Grenfell  mentions  that  the  women  of  the  western  Upper 


327.  A MANBETTU 
HONEY-POT,  WITH 
A COVER  OF  MAT- 
TING 


1 Except  shrews  and  goatsuckers. 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  615 
Conefo  cram  dogfs  with  food  as  we  do  chickens  in  order  that 

o o 

they  may  be  plump  for  killing*  and  eating*. 

“The  Bangala  at  Lukungu  market, bought  a bit  af  meat.  A dog 
ate  it.  They  wanted  their  own  bit  of  meat,  so  seized  and  opened  the 
dog  to  get  it,  thus  succeeding  in  getting  what  they  prized  more — the 
carcass  of  the  dog.”  (Grenfell.) 

The  Bahuana  of  the  great  Kwila  River,  besides  the  usual 
vegetable  diet  of  manioc  flour,  leaves,  palm  oil,  red  pepper  and 
an  indigenous  black  pepper,  eat  almost  every  form  of  animal  food 
they  can  procure,  including  human  flesh,  grasshoppers,  crickets, 
termites,  frogs,  owls,  hawks,  vultures,  snakes,  and  certain  kinds 


328.  HYDROCYON  GOLIATH,  A LARGE  FISH  OBTAINED  FROM  THE  CATARACT 
CONGO  AND  THE  UPPER  CONGO,  AND  MUCH  APPRECIATED  FOR  ITS  SALMON- 
LIKE FLESH.  IT  IS  ARMED  WITH  TUSK-LIKE  TEETH  AND  BITES  FIERCELY 


of  clay,  especially  clays  that  are  of  a red  or  violet  tint.1  The 
adjoining  Bambala  draw  the  line  at  frogs,  and  taunt  the 
Bahuana  tribe  because  it  allows  its  women  to  consume  certain 
kinds  of  frog,  from  which,  however,  the  Bahuana  men  gallantly 
abstain  “because  this  diet  makes  them  ill.” 

The  Bambala  regard  as  special  delicacies  human  flesh 
(usually  after  it  has  been  buried  for  some  days),  a large,  thick, 
white  beetle  grub  found  in  palm  trees,  rats,  locusts,  and  blood 
(human  or  goat’s)  boiled  with  manioc  flour. 

But  the  women  of  this  tribe  are  forbidden  by  the  men  to 
eat  the  following  things  (reserved  for  the  privileged  sex)  : 
human  flesh,  goat’s  flesh,  hawks,  vultures,  small  birds,  snakes 

1 According  to  Torday,  the  clay  or  earth  eaten  is  said  to  be  a cure  for  stomach- 
ache, and  has  an  astringent  taste.  It  may  be  some  form  of  decayed  vegetaticn 
or  loam. 


616  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


parrots,  crows,  and  all  animals  hunted  with  weapons  except 
antelopes  and  a small  kind  of  rat.  According  to  Torday, 
however,  the  Bambala  women  do  not  attach  overmuch  im- 
portance to  this  tabu,  at  any  rate  as  regards  human  flesh,  which 
they  obtain  when  they  can  from  the  graves,  and  eat  with  great 
enjoyment. 

Amongst  the  Bambala,  enemies  killed  in  war,  people  buried 
alive  after  the  poison  test  or  dying  in  consequence  of  it,  relations 
(except  father,  mother,  children,  uncles,  or  aunts),  and  some- 
times foreign  slaves,  are  all  eaten  ; in  fact,  any  corpse  which  is 
not  in  the  last  stages  of  decomposition  is  considered  a dainty.1 

As  regards  agriculture  and  the  keeping  of  domestic  animals , 
Congoland  is  (on  the  whole)  the  most  backward  part  of  Africa, 
with  the  exception  (as  regards  agriculture)  of  the  Bushmen  and 
Hottentot  territories. 

The  Pygmies  keep  no  domestic  animals  but  small  yellow 
dogs,  and  some  tribes  of  dwarfs  are  even  without  these.  They 
never  till  the  soil  or  grow  any  plants  for  their  own  delectation, 
not  even  tobacco,  of  which  they  are  passionately  fond.2 

Among  all  the  other  Congo  peoples  superior  to  the  Pygmy 
in  culture,  the  dog,  goat,  sheep,  and  fowl  are  almost  universal. 
The  pig  (originally  from  Portugal,  Europe)  is  kept  in  many 
parts  of  Western  and  South-Western  Congoland.  It  is  a de- 
generate and  smaller  form  of  the  average  unimproved  domestic 
swine  of  the  Iberian  peninsula.  One  interesting  feature  about 
it  is  that  (as  on  the  Guinea  Coast)  the  piglings  are  often  born 
with  greyish-yellow  pelage,  marked  with  broad  horizontal  whitish 
bands  and  spots,  as  in  the  wild  swine  of  the  genera  Sus  and 
Potamochoerus. 

As  regards  Potamochoerus , the  Red  River  Hog  (illustrated 
on  page  321)  is  tamed  and  kept  as  a domestic  animal  by  the 
Nyamnyam  and  perhaps  the  Manbettu. 

The  Bateke  of  French  Congo  are  exceedingly  fond  of  pigs, 
not  necessarily  to  eat,  but  as  pets.  A favourite  boar  may  be 
the  friend  of  the  whole  village,  and  come  readily  at  call  to  be 
fed  or  played  with. 

The  goat  of  Congoland  is  the  typical  dwarf  domestic  goat 
of  unadulterated  negro  Africa.  It  is  a breed,  of  course,  that 

1 Further  details  of  this  gruesome  subject  may  be  found  in  the  interesting  paper 
of  E.  Torday  and  T.  A.  Joyce  on  the  ethnography  of  the  Bambala— Journal  of  the 
Royal  Anthropological  Institute , Vol.  XXXV. 

2 These  sweeping  statements  refer  necessarily  to  the  Pygmies  who  have  not 
come  under  the  influence  of  superior  tribes.  Among  the  Batwa  of  the  Southern 
Forest,  fowls  are  sometimes  kept. 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  617 

originally  came  from  Egypt,  and  which,  no  doubt,  was  originally 
derived  from  the  wild  Capra  hircus  of  Western  Asia.  It  is 
curious  that  although  the  Egyptians  first  tamed  the  indigenous 
ibex  of  Egypt  and  Nubia  (there  is  also  an  Asiatic-like  ibex  on 
the  high  mountains  of  Abyssinia  which  has  had  nothing  to  do 
with  any  domestic  goat  in  Africa),  this  breed  in  its  domestic 
form  seems  to  have  died  out  completely,  without  penetrating 
into  negro  Africa,  and  even  without  in  any  way  influencing  the 
existing  domestic  breeds  in  Egypt  or  Hamitic  Africa,  all  of 
which,  though  greatly  varying  from  the  parent  stock,  seem  to 
be  traceable  to  one  wild  species — Capra  hircus . 

The  coloration1  of  the  Congo  goat  in  its  oldest  and  com- 
monest type  reverts  very  much  to  that  of  the  wild  Capra  hircus , 
even  exhibiting  sometimes  the  broad,  dark  brown  stripe  on  the 
shoulder  of  the  males  ; but  it  nearly 
always  develops  a black  instead  of 
a white  belly,  a variation  curiously 
paralleled  in  the  domestic  sheep  of 
negro  Africa.  The  horns  are  much 
reduced.  In  the  male  they  are 
broad  and  set  rather  close  together, 
and  are  very  like  those  of  the  genus 
Hemitragus. 

The  oldest  type  of  the  domestic 
sheep  of  Negroland  is  undoubtedly 
that  remarkable  dwarf  form  which 
is  found  in  the  Cameroons,  and 

which  apparently  extends  to  the  north-western  limits  of  the 
Congo  basin.  Its  coloration  is  a little  like  that  of  the  female 
European  mouflon,  with  the  exception  that  where  in  the 
latter  there  are  white  markings  (on  the  gullet,  along  the  belly, 
inside  the  hind-legs,  and  on  the  front  of  the  lower  half  of 
the  fore-legs),  in  the  dwarf  domestic  sheep  of  the  Cameroons 
and  North-West  Congo  all  these  parts  are  black  or  very  dark 
brown.  (This  abrupt  change  of  white  to  black  or  black  to 
white  markings  occurs  to  a limited  extent  in  the  Tragelaphs  as 
a sexual  difference.) 

The  ordinary  and  commonest  type  of  the  domestic  sheep  on 
the  Congo  is  black  and  white,  with  a preponderance  of  white. 
It  is  almost  identical  in  type  with  the  average  domestic  sheep 
of  the  Guinea  Coast,  and  belongs  to  the  group  tentatively  named 

1 Fawn-colour,  with  dark  brown  or  black  line  down  the  middle  of  the  back,  a dark 
brown  forehead,  blackish  beard,  and  dark  brown  or  black  longitudinal  stripes  along 
the  front  aspect  of  the  limbs. 


329.  A COOKING-POT  FROM  THE 
WESTERN  EQUATORIAL  CONGO 
(LUKOLELA),  USED  FOR  BOIL- 
ING MANIOC  FLOUR 


618  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Ovis  jubatus , from  the  very  considerable  amount  of  hair  along 
the  throat  and  under-side  of  the  neck  in  the  male.  The  tail  in 
all  Congo  and  West  African  sheep  is  without  any  deposit  of 
fat,  and  is  of  the  same  proportionate  length  as  in  the  domestic 
sheep  of  Europe,  if  anything,  a little  shorter. 

When  one  passes  to  the  south  and  east  of  Congoland  (the 
change  is  abrupt  all  along  the  Albertine  Rift  valley)  one  ex- 
changes this  smaller  white  and  black  thin-tailed  sheep  for  the 
larger,  taller  domestic  sheep  of  East  and  South  Africa,  which 
ordinarily  develops  a great  deposit  of  fat  along  the  upper  por- 
tion of  the  tail,  changes  its  throat-mane  into  a dewlap,  and  is 
more  often  (though  by  no  means  always)  fawn-colour  all  over, 

without  black 
markings  on  the 
legs.  But  the  East 
African  sheep,  pre- 
serving their  fat 
tail  and  dewlap, 
may  be  as  perma- 
nently black  and 
white  (or  all  black) 
as  is  the  case  with 
the  Maned  Sheep 
of  West  Africa.  I 
never  remember  to 
have  seen  a Maned 
Sheep  that  was 
fawn-colour;  other- 
wise I do  not  think 
there  is  any  permanent  distinction  between  the  two  types.  In 
both  the  horns  are  considerably  reduced  so  far  as  resemblance 
to  a mouflon  or  even  the  more  primitive  domestic  breeds  of 
Western  Europe  is  concerned.  The  ears  in  the  West  African 
Maned  Sheep  are  always  erect,  short,  and  narrow.  With  the 
Fat-tailed  Sheep,  especially  as  one  proceeds  nearer  to  North- 
East  Africa  and  Nubia,  the  ears  become  long  and  pendent. 

Personally,  I can  see  no  sufficient  justification  for  giving 
specific  rank  to  either  of  these  types  of  African  domestic  sheep 
— calling  the  maned  variety  Ovis  jubatus  and  the  fawn-coloured, 
fat-tailed  sheep  of  East  Africa  Ovis  longipes.  Both  forms, 
I consider,  can  be  traced  back  to  the  same  (as  yet  undiscovered) 
wild  form  of  Asiatic  or  Mediterranean  mouflon  as  gave  rise  to 
the  Ovis  aries  of  Europe  and  Asia.  The  Egyptians  first  domesti- 
cated the  Audad,  the  Thar-like  wild  sheep  of  the  Nubian  and 


330.  THE  DWARF  DOMESTIC  SHEEP  OF  THE  SOUTH 
CAMEROONS  COAST  REGION  (OVIS  JUBATUS?) 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  619 

North  African  deserts  ; but  this,  like  the  ibex,  seems  to  have 
led  to  nothing.  The  experiment  was  apparently  discarded  at 
a later  date  in  favour  of  an  imported  domestic  mouflon  from 
Syria  or  the  northern  Mediterranean,  Ovis  aries , in  fact.  It  is 
evident  to  me  that  an  early  type  of  this  first  domesticated  form 
of  Ovis  aries  penetrated  up  the  Nile  valley  into  Negroland, 
becoming  more  and  more  degenerate  in  size  and  horn  growth, 
till  it  reached  the  forests  of  the  Cameroons,  where  its  pygmy 
descendants  exist  to  this  day.  Elsewhere  over  Congoland  and 
Guinea  it  became  the  ordinary  existing  black-and-white  maned 
sheep,  the  mane  being  peculiar  to  the  male,  and  really  no  larger 
than  the  mane  of  the  mouflon  ram  of  Corsica. 

The  breeds  of  East  Africa  and  of  Nigeria  have  been 
subsequently  reinforced  by  repeated  introductions  of  new 
varieties  of  sheep  from  Galaland  and  the  Egyptian  Sudan,  these 
in  their  turn  having 
reached  the  Nile 
valley  from  Asia 
Minor  or  Syria.  It 
is  scarcely  neces- 
sary to  mention 
that  the  sheep  of 
Congoland,  as  of 
all  negro  Africa  ex- 
cept  the  valley  of 
the  northern  Niger, 
are  entirely  without  wool.  The  woolly  sheep  of  Timbuktu  and 
the  northern  Niger  are  of  Tawareq  introduction  : a degenerate 
merino  breed. 

The  dog  of  Congoland  is  nearly  always  the  fawn-coloured, 
pariah  type,  sufficiently  illustrated  in  my  drawing.  In  Southern 
Congoland,  however,  there  is  a large  blackish  dog,  and  a big 
breed  of  dogs  is  said  to  exist  amongst  the  Nyamnyam  and  the 
populations  of  Northern  Congoland.  In  the  case  of  the  large 
black  dogs  of  the  Lunda  and  Kioko,  their  origin  is  undoubtedly 
Portuguese.  The  larger  breeds  of  Northern  Congoland  may 
be  derived  from  the  Egyptian  Sudan.  Nowhere  in  negro 
Africa  or  in  Upper  Egypt  is  there  any  trace  of  the  handsome 
Eskimo-like,  Chow-like  dog  which  is  so  characteristic  a feature 
in  the  life  of  the  Berbers  and  Tawareq  of  Northern  Africa  and 
the  Sahara  Desert,  nor  of  the  primitive  greyhound  type  ( slugi ), 
also  found  in  that  region. 

The  domestic  fowl  of  Congoland  is  of  the  usual  short- 
legged,  Bantam-like  breed  found  throughout  Negroland.  But 


331.  CONGO  SHEEP  AT  BOLOBO 


620  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


right  across  the  southern  basin  of  the  Congo,  from  Angola  to 
German  East  Africa,  and  thence  to  Zanzibar,  there  is  to  be  met 
with  a long-legged,  Malay  type  of  fowl.  This  may  have  been 
introduced  both  by  the  Portuguese  on  the  west  and  the  Arabs 
on  the  east,  and  thus  have  found  its  way  right  across  South- 
Central  Africa. 

The  Muscovy  duck  introduced  by  the  Portuguese  is  now 
found  here  and  there  all  over  the  Congo  basin.  It  is  of  course 
originally  a Brazilian  bird  ( Cairino ),  and  according  to  systematic 
zoologists  is  considerably  removed  in  classification  from  the 
true  ducks  of  the  sub-family  Anatince , is,  in  fact,  much  more 
nearly  related  to  the  Spur-winged  and  Pygmy  “ Geese.”  Never- 
theless it  will  interbreed  with  the  domestic  duck  of  the  genus 
Anas , and  hybrid  forms  are  not  infrequently  met  with  in  Angola 
and  Western  Congoland. 

The  pigeon  (blue  rock)  is  kept  as  a domestic  bird  in  no  part 
of  the  Congo  basin  which  has  not  been  subjected  to  Portuguese, 
Arab,  or  Sudanese  influence.  Thus  it  is  absent  from  nearly  all 
the  interior  part  of  the  Congo  basin  except  amongst  the  Arabs 
and  Manyema  of  the  east,  the  Bakongo  of  the  west,  and  the 
natives  of  the  northern  Mubangi.  The  Bakongo  call  the  house- 
pigeon  eyembe  dia  mputu  = the  “dove  of  Portugal.”  It  has  been 
carried  by  them  in  their  trade  to  the  Kwango  River  and  Lunda 
Plateau,  nearly  meeting  the  Arab-introduced  pigeon  of  Tan- 
ganyika and  the  Lomami.  With  reference  to  the  pigeons  of 
the  upper  Mubangi,  Lord  Mountmorres  thus  describes  their 
lofty  dove-cots  : — 

“ The  fowls,  but  more  particularly  the  pigeons,  are  kept  in  extra- 
ordinarily elevated  abodes.  You  often  see  the  fowls  flying  up  from  roof 
to  roof  in  order  to  reach  the  fowl-cot,  which  stands  about  ten  or  twelve 
feet  from  the  ground.  The  pigeon-houses,  of  which  there  are  dozens, 
must  be  twenty-five  or  thirty  feet  high.  I could  not  find  out  why  they 
were  raised  to  this  extreme  height,  but  it  was  a common  custom  of  the 
people  in  this  part  to  build  their  dove-cots  and  fowl-houses  to  a con- 
siderable height.” 

Cattle  are  almost  absent  from  the  forest  region  of  the  Congo 
basin.  To  a number  of  the  Forest  negroes  they  are  absolutely 
unknown,  and  when  brought  to  notice  are  described  by  the 
same  name  as  the  buffalo.  Domestic  cattle  scarcely  exist  in 
Northern  Congoland,  even  in  the  park-lands  outside  the  forest 
belt.  There  are  no  cattle  amongst  the  Nyamnyam,  Manbettu, 
or  the  tribes  of  the  northern  Mubangi.  They  are  absolutely 
unknown  on  the  Aruwimi,  though  the  instant  the  traveller 
leaves  the  watershed  of  the  Congo  to  enter  that  of  the  Nile 


332.  BABANGI  DOGS,  WESTERN  EQUATORIAL  CONGO 


. •• 


U3K0 

UNIVERSITY  OF  >EUN0\a 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  623 

he  will  find  amongst  the  Bantu-speaking  peoples  of  Hima  or 
Unyoro  stock  the  magnificent  oxen  of  the  Gala  type  ( Bos 
cegyptiacus).  These  large,  long-horned  cattle  (with  or  without 
a hump)  penetrate  into  the  Congo  basin  from  the  Albertine 
Rift  valley  in  Burundi  and  the  north-western  coast  regions  of 
Tanganyika,  perhaps  also  as  far  west  as  Burega.  In  a much 
modified  form,  and  perhaps  mixed  a little  with  the  zebu , humped 
ox  of  East  Africa,  they  have  entered  Southern  Congoland 
from  the  direction  of  the  Nyasa-Tanganyika  plateau,  and  so 
have  made  their  way  into  the  Lunda  and  Luba  territories. 
Thence,  this  long-horned  type  (to  be  distinguished  from  the 
long-horned  cattle  of  Western  Europe  by  the  different  direction 
of  the  horns)  has 
even  reached 
Damaraland  from 
Southern  Angola 
and  the  regions  of 
the  upper  Zambezi. 

But  the  Portu- 
guese early  in  their 
work  of  coloniza- 
tion introduced  the 
long-horned  cattle 
(. Bos  taurus ) of  the 
Iberian  peninsula, 
and  these  have 
been  carried  east- 
wards as  presents 
to  notable  chiefs, 
and  so  have  min- 
gled with  the  zebu  and  the  Gala  types  to  produce  the  present 
existing  cattle  of  South-West  Congoland,  which  now  extend 
their  range  (not  commonly)  in  the  valley  of  the  Kwango  as 
far  north  as  the  Kingunji  Rapids. 

Grenfell  remarks  that  although  cattle  are  kept  by  the 
Bayaka,  they  live  in  a semi-wild  state,  with  no  accommodation 
provided  for  them,  and  he  illustrates  this  by  a photograph  of  a 
nearly  wild  herd  by  the  banks  of  the  Kwango.  He  relates  that 
when  an  ox  is  presented  to  the  traveller  by  a chief  in  South- 
West  Congoland  it  is  necessary  to  stalk  and  shoot  it  as  though 
it  were  a wild  animal.  It  is  needless  to  remark  that  any  idea 
of  milking  the  cattle  or  goats  is  entirely  absent  from  the  minds 
of  the  Congo  negroes,  except  on  the  border  of  the  Nile  water- 
shed, where  a Hima  people  like  the  Ava-tusi  are  as  devoted  to 


333.  A BULL  OF  THE  TYPE  OF  CATTLE  BELONGING 
TO  THE  BAYANZI  ON  THE  WESTERN  EQUATORIAL 
CONGO  (1894) 


624  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  drinking  of  milk  as  is  the  case  with  the  Damara  on  the 
south-west  and  the  Masai  in  the  Equatorial  east. 

The  Bayanzi,  who  obviously  originated  on  the  borders  of 
the  Luba-Kuba  civilization  centre,  seem  to  have  brought  cattle 
with  them  thence  to  the  banks  of  the  Congo  before  the  arrival 

o 

of  Europeans,  and  not  only  that,  but  to  have  preserved  in 
their  language  the  characteristic  Bantu  word  for  ox — nombe — 
not  existing  anywhere  else  in  the  central  or  northern  basin  of 
the  Congo  except  amongst  the  Ba-kongo.1 


334.  HERD  OF  SEMI-WILD  CATTLE  IN  THE  BAYAKA  COUNTRY, 

LOWER  KWANGO  RIVER 

The  superstitious  fuss  and  reverence  attached  to  the  keeping 
of  cattle  seems  to  have  penetrated  slightly  from  the  east  into 
the  Luba  and  Lunda  countries.  It  is  evidenced  by  the  head- 
dresses adopted,  which  are  more  or  less  conventional  represen- 
tations of  the  horns  of  cattle  (and  not  always  of  buffaloes). 

1 One  of  the  unsolved  problems  in  Bantu  studies  is  the  possession  by  the  natives 
of  Fernando  Po  in  one  or  more  dialects  of  an  indigenous  word  for  buffalo  or  ox — 
nkopo — which  is  possibly  allied  to  the  nkomo  root  in  South  Africa,  a parallel  variant 
with  the  other  root  -ombe  of  the  eastern  Bantu.  The  ox  as  a domestic  animal  is  known 
and  valued  in  the  Northern  Cameroons  and  the  regions  of  the  upper  Cross  River,  from 
whence  this  word  may  possibly  have  reached  F ernando  Po  ; though  the  root  word  for 
ox  in  the  semi-Bantu  languages  of  the  Cross-River-Cameroons  region  is  Mfon , a word 
also  used  to  express  “ chief,”  “ nobleman.”  The  common  word  for  ox  in  Fernando  Po 
is  Mboko , perhaps  the  same  as  Mbogo , a widespread  eastern  Bantu  name  for  buffalo. 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING 


625 


■ - 


Agriculture  amongst  the  Congo  peoples  is  that  of  the  negro 
type,  uninfluenced  by  any  Caucasian  ideas  of  a later  date  than 
the  most  early  Neolithic  times.  One  negative  feature  of  the 
negro  peoples  throughout  tropical  Africa  is  their  ignorance  of 
the  plough.  Where  you  meet  with  a plough, 
however  rude,  in  tropical  Africa,  you  are 
amongst  a race  whose  connection  with  the 
Caucasic  stem  preponderates  over  their  negro 
element.  The  plough,  for  example,  is  almost 
universally  used  amongst  the  Gala  down  to 
the  verge  of  British  East  Africa,  but  it  is 
never  employed  by  the  uninfluenced  Nilotic 
or  Bantu  negroes.  Another  negative  charac- 
teristic  of  negro  agriculture  is  the  neglect  of 
animal  manure.  The  negro’s  only  idea  of 
enriching  the  soil  is  to  burn  the  scrub  or 
forest  which  he  cuts  down  to  establish  a 
plantation.  He  seems  to  have  grasped  the 
idea  that  the  mingling  of  the  ashes  of  this 
vegetable  refuse  with  the  soil  will  enrich  it. 

But  negroes  are  totally  unaware  of  the  im- 
portance of  using  other  forms  of  refuse  as 
manure,  especially  the  dung  of  beasts  or 
birds.  The  Nyamnyam,  it  is  true,  plant 
tobacco  in  the  kitchen-middens  or  heaps  of 
refuse  about  their  houses,  but  do  not  apply 
the  principle  any  further.  The  result  is  that 
negro  agriculture  is  extremely  wasteful,  and 
attempts  to  restrain  this  on  the  part  of  the 
Congo  State  authorities  have  led  to  the  same 
troubles  as  have  occurred  similarly  in  British 
dominions.  The  native,  for  example,  clears 
a fresh  patch  of  forest  or  scrub  each  year 
for  a new  crop.  The  old  plantation  reverts 
to  a condition  of  unprofitable  jungle,  and  the 
magnificent  forest,  naturally,  cannot  be  re- 
placed. The  result  is,  as  Grenfell  points 
out  in  his  report  on  the  Lunda  Expedi- 
tion, that  the  average  Bantu  peoples  are  really  nomads 
■ — incessant  migrants.  They  soon  exhaust  a neighbourhood 
from  the  point  of  view  of  agriculture,  and  then  are  com- 
pelled to  move  on  elsewhere.  This  has  led  to  enormous 
destruction  of  forest  growth  in  Africa,  and,  of  course,  to 
incessant  wars  of  offence  and  defence,  and  has  been  one  of 


ill 


335.  THE  HANDLE  OF  A 
HOE  FROM  THE  BA- 
PINDI  PEOPLE,  UP- 
PER KWILU  RIVER, 
S.W.  CONGOLAND 
The  two  wooden  points  are 
used  as  a rake. 


II. K 


626  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  causes  of  the  comparatively  small  population  of  the  richest 
continent  in  the  world. 

The  only  agricultural  implements  used  in  the  Congo  are  the 
hoe,  and  possibly  a two-pronged  rake.  As  may  be  seen  by 
illustration  No.  331,  this  rake  is  occasionally  an  adaptation  of 
the  hoe-handle.  Originally  the  hoe  was  simply  made  out 
of  a forked  tree-stem,  cut  off  just  below  the  bifurcation.  One 
branch  was  shortened  and  pared  to  a fine  edge,  the  other  was 


336.  NATIVE  WOMEN  MAKING  COOKING-POTS 


left  round  and  long  as  a handle.  This  form  of  primitive 
wooden  hoe  occurs  frequently  in  the  Congo  basin.  When, 
however,  the  use  of  iron  was  introduced  by  Hima  immigrants 
at  any  time  between  2000  b.c.  and  the  present  day,  an  iron 
blade  was  substituted  for  the  wooden  spatula. 

As  agriculture  is  mainly  the  task  of  the  women,  the  hoe 
has  been  considered  specially  their  implement,  of  offence  and 
defence  as  well  as  for  its  proper  purpose.  Grenfell  points  out 
(page  122)  that  when  the  women  are  given  a victim  to  execute, 
they  despatch  the  unfortunate  person  by  chopping  with  their 
iron  hoes. 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING 


627 


Sharpened  stakes  are  used  for  many  purposes  in  agriculture, 
and,  of  course,  axes  are  employed  for  cutting  down  trees,  and  a 
kind  of  bill-hook  or  sword  for  the  scrub. 

A good  deal  of  detailed  information  has  already  been  given 
about  the  agriculture  of  the  northern  people,  especially  the 
Banza,  and  it  has  also  been  mentioned  that  whereas  the  men 
cut  down  the  forest  and  the  rank  growth  of  the  scrub, 
nearly  all  the  remainder  of  agricultural  work  is  allotted  to 
the  women,  with  the  special  ex- 
ception of  certain  tribes  already 
mentioned. 


The  first  approach  to  cooking 
in  the  development  of  the  human  337-  a dish  in  whitish  clay  of 

race  may  have  been  a practice 

which — if  Grenfell’s  stories  of  gorillas  given  to  him  by  the 
natives  are  correctly  founded — has  already  been  inherent  in 
the  anthropoid  ape — that  is  the  softening  of  the  fibres  and 
partial  disintegration  of  flesh  by  the  commencement  of  putre- 
faction. Certain  races  of  savages  all  over  the  tropical 
world  still  prepare  for  consumption  articles  of  animal  and 
vegetable  food  by  burying  them  and  submitting  them  to  a 

certain  degree  of 
decay. 

Others  again  ma- 
cerate flesh,  roots, 
leaves,  etc.,  in  water 
for  the  same  pur- 
pose. 

If  the  accounts 
given  by  Wissmann, 
Wolf,  and  other  Ger- 
man explorers  of  the 
south-central  basin 
of  the  Congo  twenty  and  more  years  ago  are  correct,  the 
Pygmy  races  in  that  region  were,  in  the  wilder  districts, 
without  the  use  of  fire.  Arabs  and  Swahilis  from  the  same 
region  have  told  the  present  writer  that  the  Pygmy  people 
between  Tanganyika  and  the  Lualaba  never  cooked  their 
food,  but  ate  it  raw  or  partly  rotten. 

The  affection  of  almost  all  the  Congo  races,  except  those  of 
slightly  European  culture  in  the  south  and  west,  for  putrid  meat 
or  fish  is  remarkable. 

Of  course,  very  early  in  the  development  of  the  human 


338.  A LARGE  STEWPAN  IN  WHITISH  CLAY  OF 
THE  BATENDE  OR  BABUMA  PEOPLE  (LOWER 
KASAI  OR  KWA  RIVER) 


628  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


race  in  Africa  meteorological  conditions  introduced  man  to  the 


agency  of  fire.  I n previous  works  on  African  questions  the  present 

writer  has  drawn 
attention  to  the 
relative  f re- 
quency  within 
his  own  personal 
experience  of 
flashes  of  light- 
ning setting  fire 
to  dead  trees, 
grass,  or  native 
huts,  and,  in  fact, 
of  bush  fires  on  a 
large  scale  be- 
inor  sometimes 
started  by  a flash 
of  lightninginthe 
tornado  season. 
In  the  train  of 
339.  a cooking-pot  of  the  bangala,  n.w.  congo,  these  devastat- 

FOR  USE  IN  CANOES  • bush  fires 

(tire  or  charcoal  is  put  in  the  lower  receptacle.)  / 1 • i 

(which  naturally 

occur  almost  entirely  outside  the  true  forest  region,  wherein  the 
dampness  would  make  such  a 
thing  impossible)  follow  human 
beings,  kites,  wild  dogs,  jackals, 
and  storks,  searching  for  and  de- 
vouring numerous  rodents,  small 
antelopes,  lizards,  snakes,  and 
birds  which  have  been  surprised 
and  roasted  by  the  flames.  It  is 
quite  probable  that  in  this  way 
alone  early  man  (in  Africa,  at  any 
rate)  became  acquainted  with  the 
use  of  fire  as  a means  of  preparing 
substances  for  easier  digestion. 

At  the  present  day  the  almost 
universal  mode  of  producing  fire 
amongst  the  Congo  peoples  (where 
neither  flint  and  steel  nor  matches 
have  penetrated)  is  by  friction  between  pieces  of  wood.1  The 


340.  CARVED  AND  INCISED  WOODEN 
DRINKING-CUP,  CENTRAL  KASAI 
REGION 


1 The  commonest  method  of  fire-production  in  Africa  is  well  illustrated  in  my 
book  on  the  Kilimanjaro  Expedition,  page  435. 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING  629 

tinder  most  commonly  in  use  is  the  pith  of  the  raphia-palm 
fronds. 

Early  in  the  sixteenth  century  the  Portuguese  on  the  West 
Coast  introduced  flint  and  steel,  and  this  to  a certain  extent 
became  the  favourite  method  of  fire-production  in  South- 
Western  Congoland.  Muhammadan  influence  may  have  intro- 
duced like  methods  in  the  far  north  of  the  Congo  basin,  but  so 
far  as  my  information  goes,  the  almost  universal  method  is  the 
friction  of  wood. 

The  Congo  brain  has  not  been  racked  with  the  need  of 
inventiveness  in  fire-production,  once  fire  was  started  by  one 
method  or  another,  or  by  natural  causes  ; because  within  each 
native  community  the  tribal  fire  (so  to  speak)  is  constantly  kept 


341.  WOODEN  CUPS  FROM  THE  BAYAKA  COUNTRY,  KWANGO  RIVER 


going,  never  goes  out.  Each  native  household  keeps  up  a 
perpetual  wood  fire.  When  proceeding  on  a journey  or  migrat- 
ing, smouldering  sticks  are  taken  with  the  party,  so  that  it  is 
a somewhat  rare  incident  when  fire  has  to  be  produced  by  arti- 
ficial means.  The  dwarfs  have  probably  never  for  themselves 
invented  methods  of  fire-making,  but  as  soon  as  they  take  to 
this  principle  in  cooking  carry  off  borrowed  fire  (and  continue  to 
do  so)  from  the  taller  negroes  in  whose  vicinity  they  live. 

The  Pygmy  in  his  untutored  condition,  where  he  is  un- 
influenced by  the  Neolithic  civilization  around  him,  makes  no 
more  use  of  fire  in  cooking  than  to  broil  meat  or  vegetables 
and  to  bake  these  substances  under  hot  ashes.  Where  he  has 
taken  to  the  use  of  (borrowed)  pottery,  he  may  of  course  have 
risen  to  the  stage  of  stewing  and  boiling. 

But  all  the  other  Congo  negroes  above  the  Pygmy  stage  of 


630  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


X J 
vj 


culture  prepare  their  food  with  some  care.  They  roast,  bake, 
broil,  stew,  and  boil.  The  Bangala  and  some  of  the  other 

riverain  tribes  do  a 
great  deal  of  cooking 

I in  their  canoes,  and  for 

this  purpose  have  in- 
vented a very  clever 
(and  artistic)  cooking- 
pot  which  contains  an 
_ earthenware  receptacle 

below  for  fire  or  char- 
coal. 

Dishes  and  plates  are 
made  out  of  clay,  and 
also  of  wood,  though 
not  so  commonly  of  this 
last  material  as  in  the 
V interior  regions  of 

Guinea.  Of  course  the 
gourd , cut  into  various 
shapes,  makes  a useful 
bowl  and  drinking- 
vessel.  The  more  civi- 
lized peoples  of  the 
south  - west  have  im- 
ported during  the  last 
two  centuries  pottery 
shapes  from  the  Portu- 
guese, and  turn  out 
cups,  mugs,  and  goblets 
not  only  in  earthenware, 
but  also  in  carved  wood, 
and  in  closely  plaited 
string.  Many  vessels 
for  holding-  water  and 

o 

palm  wine  are  made  in 
the  Congo  regions  out 

, o o 

of  plaited  string  or  fibre, 
so  closely  woven  that 
342.  (1)  native  spoon  from  upper  congo.  (2)  with  a slight  smearing 

AXE-HANDLE  FROM  LUKUGA  RIVER  (EASTERN  of  reSin  for  eVdl  With- 
CONGOLAND)  x ! \ 

out)  they  become  water- 
tight  (see  page  801).  Knives  may  be  used  for  cutting  up 
meat,  but  the  fingers  take  the  place  of  knives  and  forks  for 


FOOD,  AGRICULTURE,  COOKING 


631 


the  consumption  of  a meal,  the  only  implement  for  conveying 
food  to  the  mouth  used  throughout  untouched  Negroland 
being  the  spoon.  On  the  spoon , which  of  course  in  origin 
is  little  else  than  a small  bowl  with  a handle,  the  negro  has 
lavished  a surprising  amount  of  inven- 
tive and  decorative  art,  perhaps  not 
quite  so  much  in  the  Congo  basin  as  in 
the  regions  of  Guinea  and  of  South- 
Central  Africa.  (Some  of  the  Barotse, 

Batonga,  Bechuana  spoons  are  really 
things  of  beauty,  though  of  course  their 
manufacture  has  nearly  come  to  an  end 
under  the  paralysing  influence  of  Euro- 
pean trade  articles.) 

It  would  seem  as  though  the  abo- 
riginal Congo  spoon  was  the  shell  of 
some  fresh-water  mollusc  with  a hole 
drilled  in  the  edge  that  affixed  it  to  a 
wooden  handle. 

Most  of  the  Congo  peoples,  except 
the  Bayanzi  and  the  Pygmies,  are  clean 
in  their  cooking ; and  some  of  their 
stews,  soups,  or  porridges  are  quite 
appetizing  to  a European,  who,  however, 
in  the  interior  regions  (at  any  rate  until 
recently),  required  to  be  very  wary  of 
sharing  in  native  repasts  if  he  did  not 
wish  unconsciously  to  become  a can- 
nibal. 

Meals  are  usually  eaten  early  in  the 
morning  and  after  sunset,  with  little 
more  than  a snack  in  between  ; the 
evening  meal  is  probably  the  most  im- 
portant. In  many  districts  husband  and 
wife  eat  together  off  the  same  plate,  but 
as  a general  rule  the  man  and  boys  of  the  household  eat  by 
themselves.  Even  in  the  great  feasts  there  is  to  a certain 
extent  a separation  of  the  sexes.  This  arises  partly  from  the 
tabu  placed  on  the  unfortunate  women  in  respect  of  articles  of 
food,  to  the  advantage  of  the  male  sex. 


343.  WOODEN  SPOONS  FROM 
UPPER  CONGO,  USED  FOR 
EATING  THICK  PORRIDGE 
OF  MANIOC  FLOUR 


CHAPTER  XXV 


RELIGION;  BURIAL,  MARRIAGE,  AND  BIRTH  CUS- 
TOMS; INITIATION  CEREMONIES;  SOCIAL  LAWS, 
SLAVERY;  ADMINISTRATION  OF  JUSTICE,  Etc.1 

IT  is  said  of  the  Ababua  of  Northern  Congoland  and  of  the 
Bagenya  on  the  Lualaba- Congo  that  these  people  are  with- 
out a religion  and  “ do  not  believe  in  any  God.” 

If  the  term  “religion”  may  include  within  its  scope  a belief 
in  a personal  life  after  death  and  in  a force  or  forces  outside  the 
visible  world,  I scarcely  think  this  statement  is  true  of  any 
human  race  in  the  Congo  basin,  the  Pygmies  not  excepted. 
Even  these  dwarf  hunting  nomads,  leading  a life  equivalent  to 
one  of  the  earliest  stages  of  human  culture,  believe — so  far  as 
their  impressions  have  been  recorded — in  some  vague,  super- 
human power  of  the  sky  ( Nzambi , if  they  speak  in  Bantu 
dialects),  and  think  that  chiefs  or  village  elders  live  again  after 
death  in  the  form  of  bush-pigs  or  snakes. 

The  stalwart  Banza  negroes  of  the  western  Mubangi  basin 
believe  that  their  chieftains  are  reincarnated  in  chimpanzis. 
Up  and  down  the  main  Congo  the  Bantu  populations  consider 
it  possible  for  the  spirits  of  dead  and  living  men  to  enter  the 
bodies  of  buffaloes,  leopards,  or  crocodiles,  in  order  that  they 
may  inflict  injuries  on  their  enemies.  The  Basoko  cannibals  of 
the  lower  Aruwimi  believe  in  a kind  of  transmigration  of  souls 
and  in  a continuation  of  consciousness  after  the  death  of  the 
body. 

In  a general  way  the  negroes  of  all  Congoland  [and  of 
nearly  all  pagan  Africa]  have  imagined  a Supreme  Spirit  of  the 
Sky,  a Jove,  the  utterer  of  thunder,  the  giver  or  withholder  of 

1 A little  of  the  information  that  follows  (derived  from  Bentley,  Grenfell,  Staple- 
ton,  and  other  Baptist  missionaries)  and  two  or  three  of  the  illustrations  (by  William 
Forfeitt  and  Grenfell)  have  already  appeared  in  the  volume  on  Religion , published 
in  1906  in  the  “Annales  du  Musee  du  Congo  ” (Tervueren,  Brussels).  But  as  far  as 
possible  I have  avoided  covering  the  same  ground  or  using  Baptist  Mission  photo- 
graphs which  have  appeared  before.  No  one  who  wishes  to  study  the  religious 
beliefs,  burial  customs,  initiation  ceremonies,  or  trials-by-ordeal  of  the  Congo  peoples 
should  fail  to  examine  the  above-mentioned  publication,  which  is  much  indebted  to 
the  researches  and  collections  of  missionaries,  British  and  Belgian. 

632 


344-  an  example  of  negro  art  : a fetish  shrine,  painted  in 

FOUR  COLOURS,  FROM  THE  CONGO  COAST  REGION  NEAR  BANANA 
(In  Congo  Museum  at  Tervueren.) 


, . or  THE 
UNIVERSITY  of  ILLINOIS 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  635 

rain,  the  Hand  that  wields  the  levin-stroke.  This  is  the 
Nzambi Nyambe , of  Western  Congoland  ; Nzakomba,Liyanza, 
and  Chctmbi  of  the  centre  ; the  Kabezya-inpungu  of  the  Luba 
countries  ; Mfidi  of  the  Bakuba  ; Leza  of  the  south-east ; and 

Loula , Firie , Ruhanga , Namwanga,  Ori,  Mbdri , Ehketa , Ala, 
and  Zaba1  2 of  the  east  and  north.  Even  the  Bambute  Pygmies 
possess  an  original  name  for  the  Sky-god — Alidida. 

The  conception  of  the  Supreme  God,  the  ruler  of  the  sky 
and  pervader  of  all  things,  is  but  little  associated  in  negro 
Africa  with  the  worship  of  sun  or  moon — in  the  Congo  basin,  at 
any  rate.  Little  interest  or  superstition  appears  to  be  attached 
to  these  luminaries.  [Vide  p.  815.] 

The  nature  of  the  Sky-god  is  more  or  less  anthropomorphic. 
In  the  east  and  south-east  of  Africa  the  conception  of  the  Deity 
may  be  gradually  attained  through  steps  of  ancestor- worship  : 
the  mighty  chief,  great-grandfather  and  founder  of  the  tribe, 
may,  from  haunting  a cavern  or  a tree  or  living  again  in  the 
lion  or  elephant,  gradually  mount  (in  the  imagination  of  his 
descendants)  to  the  cloud-world  above,  and  in  the  interests  of 
his  children’s  children  take  charge  of  the  thunder,  lightning, 
and  the  rain.  But  in  the  Congo  basin  God  is  rather  imagined 
as  the  pre-existing  Creator,3  who  has  probably  called  man  into 
existence,  however  indifferent  He  may  afterwards  show  Himself 
as  to  the  fate  of  each  human  being. 

In  some  districts,  especially  in  South-West  Congoland,  the 
Sky-god  is  regarded  with  sorrowful  reproach  as  “He  who  makes 
us  die.”  He  is  feared,  is  reverenced,  is  thought  to  be  just  in  His 
punishments  ; but  no  expressions  of  love  or  gratitude  towards 
Him  seem  to  be  recorded. 

According  to  Mr.  E.  W.  Smith’s  Handbook  of  the  I la 
Language ,4  the  Baila  of  the  Zambezi-Congo  frontier  ascribe 
to  the  Almighty  the  following  attributes  : — 

“ The  one  who  throws  down  for  himself  the  imbula  fruit. 

“ The  one  who  institutes  customs,  etc. 

“ The  one  who  gives  gifts  and  rots  them. 

“ The  one  who  rots  the  masuko  [a  fruit  which  goes  rotten  in  the 
rainy  season]. 

“ The  Creator. 

1 The  fullest  form  in  the  Kongo  language  is  Nzambi-ampungu  = God  of  Heaven. 

2 These  last  nine  words  are  from  the  following  languages  in  order  of  rotation 
(beginning  with  Ldula ) : Manyema , Kilega , Lukonjo , Mbuba , and  the  Ruwenzori 
dialects,  Madi , Nyamnyam , Northern  Congo  Bantu,  Ababna,  and  Sango. 

3 I am  quoting  a good  deal  from  Grenfell’s  notes  in  these  remarks. 

4 A most  useful  compendium  of  information  on  Bantu  customs  and  beliefs,  pub- 
lished by  the  Oxford  University  Press. 


636  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

“ The  sender  of  so  much  water  that  there  is  no  place  left  dry. 

“ The  giver  of  thunder  and  much  rain. 

“ The  one  who  does  what  no  other  can  do. 

“ The  rain  giver. 

“ That  all  things  are  his,  and  he  can  do  as  he  wishes.” 

[Note. — See  also  the  ideas  about  God  held  by  the  Batabwa 
of  Marun^u,  set  forth  in  Rev.  Father  V.  Acker’s  Dictionnaire 
Kitabwa  Frangais , published  by  the  Musee  du  Congo,  Ter- 
vueren.] 

In  the  beliefs  of  many  of  these  Congo  negroes  the  Supreme 
God  of  the  sky  is  too  far  off  to  care  about  humanity  : He 
created  all  things  and  left  everything  but  the  supreme  control 
to  a multitude  of  petty  spirits  ; or  He  allowed  unchecked  the 
spitefulness  of  a lesser  god,  a more  or  less  malignant  Devil. 
Such  is  the  Moloki 1 of  the  Bayaka  (Kwango-Kwilu  rivers) 
and  much  else  of  Southern,  Central,  and  Eastern  Congoland  ; 
or  the  Ngumba  of  the  Nsakara  (north  Mubangi),  the  Nkadi 
of  the  Eshi- Kongo,  the  Elemba  of  the  Ababua,  the  Banda  of 
the  Basongomeno,  and  the  Ngulu  of  the  Batabwa. 

The  conception  of  a single  Evil  god  is  sometimes  split  up 
into  several  or  many  individual  devils  or  quite  a host  of  demons,2 
each  and  all  of  which  have  to  be  placated  or  defeated.  Some 
of  these  may  be  the  souls  of  dead  people — souls  can  act  as 
demons  and  must  be  propitiated.  But  for  the  most  part  in 
Congoland  and  much  else  of  negro  Africa,  God,  Devil,  demons 
seem  to  be  considered  as  entities  or  forces  distinct  from 
humanity.3  They — the  lesser  spirits,  at  any  rate — are  human 
in  their  intelligence,  can  be  flattered,  propitiated,  deceived  ; are 
sometimes  kind  to  the  individuals  or  clans  they  patronize  or 
who  adopt  them  as  protectors  or  allies. 

1 “The  Bayaka  believe  in  the  existence  of  a malign  spirit  called  Moloki.  Moloki 
is  supposed  to  cause  sickness  and  death,  and  to  be  able  to  possess  some  old  man  or 
woman,  who  thus  becomes  a witch.  These  witches  are  compelled  to  submit  to  the 
poison  ordeal.”  (Torday.) 

loki , - doki , - loshi , -lozi,  - loi , in  varying  forms,  is  a widespread  Bantu  root — 
from  east  to  west — for  an  evil  spirit  or  the  evil  spirit.  The  word  is  consequently  much 
associated  with  “ witchcraft,”  “ wizard,”  and  other  associations  of  spiritual  evil. 

2 Nkwiya  of  Kongo  ; Bizo  of  the  Babangi ; Ifiwa , Ivibanda  of  south-west 
Tanganyika. 

3 According  to  the  missionaries  of  the  Kasai-Lulua,  the  Baluba  believe  in  a 
crowd  of  fantastic  beings  called  bashangi , bakishi , who  wander  every  night  through 
the  darkness,  indulge  in  a thousand  playful  and  grotesque  games,  and  allow  a 
glimpse  of  themselves  from  time  to  time  in  the  form  of  shooting  stars  ; they  often 
come  to  terrify  the  living  and  scatter  death  in  their  villages  ; they  are  an  evil  race 
— “wicked  fairies” — whose  sole  aim  is  to  injure  and  whose  chief  happiness  is  to 
make  people  wretched.  But  it  is  also  thought  that  these  spirits  can  be  the  tem- 
porarily disembodied  souls  of  wicked  sorcerers. 

In  Fernando  Po,  a distinction  is  made  between  a demon  or  spirit  ( niorimo ) and 
a man’s  soul  ( mwe ). 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  637 

These  spirits  or  devils  may  inhabit — or  repose  a portion  of 
their  influence  in — certain  trees,  rocks,  caverns,  whirlpools  ; 
or  they  can  be  induced  to  permeate  small  substances  such  as 
figures  of  clay,  wood,  or  metal ; bags  of  powder ; messes  of 
leaves  and  mud ; posts,  notched  sticks ; stones  of  strange  shape  ; 
human  skulls,  serpents’  heads,  birds’  beaks,  bundles  of  feathers, 
leopards’  claws  ; live  animals  or  birds  (usually  male).  The  com- 
monest type  of  spirit-indwelt  object  or  fetish1  (as  apart  from  a 
mere  charm  or  amulet2)  is  a head,  a mask,  or  a large  or  small 
figure.  For  the  most  part  it  is  humanity  that  is  mimicked  ; 
but  the  demon  may  be  associated  with  the  model  of  a dog, 
leopard,  crocodile,  buffalo,  or  snake. 

Many  of  these  are  “idols,”  in  the  strict  sense  of  a word 
which  once  inflamed  Christendom  with  zealous  horror;  though 
some  1,000,000,000  Christians,  Muhammadans,  Buddhists, 
and  Hindus  are  as  much — and  no  more — idolaters  as  fetish- 
worshipping Africans.  Much  needless  controversy  has  raged 
round  this  wholly  unessential  point  (for  conduct  is  the  only 

1 Teke  in  Kongo,  Elima  in  Bangi,  Nketo  in  Lolo.  Teke , the  Kongo  word,  means 
more  distinctly  a human  image,  a dwarf  representation  of  humanity,  and  may  even 
come  from  an  old  Bantu  root  meaning  “pygmy”  (compare  Ba-teke). 

2 Amulets  or  charms  worn  on  the  body  (Nkisz  in  Kongo,  Hemba  in  Ki-yaka)  may 
be  knotted  string  necklaces,  metal  bracelets  or  anklets,  catskin  bags  of  powder, 
beans  or  large  seeds  or  shells  on  a string,  and  many  other  small  objects.  According 
to  Grenfell  and  Father  Geens,  the  following  charms  and  fetishes  are  in  vogue  on  the 
Upper  Congo  among  the  Babangi,  Bangala,  Ngombe,  and  Bapoto  : — 

There  is  the  Ebidza , much  employed  all  over  Equatorial  Congoland.  It  consists 
of  a young  palm  tree  bound  on  a stick  to  be  set  in  the  plantations  before  a small  hut 
in  order  to  divert  evil  spells. 

In  case  of  sickness  the  Bibidza  (known  as  Ntsekia , and  Likinda  by  the  Babangi) 
are  always  stuck  in  places  about  the  dwelling-house.  If  any  one  dares  in  spite  of 
this  to  put  witchcraft  on  the  sick  man,  such  person  will  quickly  die  of  hemorrhage  of 
the  nose. 

The  same  fate  is  in  store  for  any  robber  trying  to  enter  the  house  of  a man  who, 
on  starting  for  a journey,  has  protected  his  door  by  an  ebidza  [which  every  native 
takes  care  to  do].  The  robber  will  bleed  from  the  nose  to  such  an  extent  that  people 
will  be  able  to  follow  him  by  his  bloodstained  steps. 

Sepo  or  Sefo  consists  of  a small  piece  of  wood,  with  a hole  bored  in  it,  which  by 
means  of  a string  is  worn  on  the  arms,  legs,  neck,  or  even  round  the  waist,  to  preserve 
the  wearer  from  all  evils. 

The  sepo  also  gives  strength,  and  especially  much  reliance.  For  this  reason  it  is 
worn  in  warfare  to  drive  away  fear.  They  put  it  round  small  children  to  make  them 
strong.  Slaves  wear  it  that  their  masters  may  at  the  moment  of  flogging  them 
suddenly  change  their  minds. 

It  is  likewise  a protection  against  an  evil  spell  and  at  the  same  time  a bringer  of 
luck  to  its  wearer.  It  is  also  said  to  permit  the  wearer  to  eat  as  much  as  he  likes 
without  suffering  from  indigestion  ! 

The  Nyeka  is  a piece  of  hollow  wood,  a kind  of  whistle,  which  is  worn  round  the 
arm,  or  more  often  round  the  neck.  People  keep  several  of  them,  each  of  which 
serves  its  own  purpose.  Of  such  is  the  nyeka  for  rain.  If  one  whistles  on  it,  one 
can  at  choice  stop  the  rain  or  bring  it  on.  The  whistle  for  war  is  larger  : it  suffices  to 
use  it  once  only  at  the  beginning  of  hostilities  to  avoid  all  injury. 

Another  very  useful  nyeka  is  that  on  which  if  one  whistles  at  the  door  of  one’s 
debtors  the  latter  will  be  found  at  home  and  ready  to  pay  their  debts  ! 


638  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

thing-  that  really  counts  as  the  outcome  of  religious  faith)  : does 
the  African  worship  the  graven  image  or  the  ttnseen  force  it 
represents  or  contains  ? In  some  cases  he  distinguishes  readily 
between  the  crude  material  symbol  of  no  intrinsic  value  and 
the  god,  demon,  dead  man’s  soul,  or  elemental  natural  force 
[generative  powers,1  rainfall,  disease,  craft  of  wild  animals] 
it  represents,  or  for  which  it  acts  as  a temporary  home  or 

receptacle.  But  from 
this  attitude  the  minds 
of  many  negroes  slide 
easily  (as  do  those  of 
other  religionists  of 
other  races) into  identi- 
fying the  image  with 
the  deity  or  force,  and 
lavishing  their  worship 
and  regard  on  a ma- 
terial emblem. 

In  reference  to  the 
appreciation  of  the  idol 
or  fetish  as  merely 
visualizing  the  Divine 
Force,  and  not  as  em- 
bodying the  divinity 
itself,  Grenfell  in- 
scribes this  note  in  his 
diary  : — 

“ Mr.  Banks  tells  me 
of  an  instance  where  a 
native  at  Mukimvika, 
upon  being  accused  of 

1 According  to  some  notes  of  Grenfell  concerning  fetishes  in  use  on  the  Zombo 
plateau  (west  of  lower  Kwango),  a certain  amount  of  “ phallic ” worship  exists  or 
existed  among  the  eastern  Bakongo  ; not  that  the  representations  of  the  generative 
powers — male  or  female — were  worshipped,  but  that  these  rude  images  were  the 
abiding  place  of  a spirit  force  which,  if  rightly  propitiated,  would  promote  fruitful 
intercourse  between  men  and  women.  Torday  reported  a somewhat  elaborate  ritual 
amongst  the  eastern  Bayanzi  (Kwilu-Kasai).  Vide  “The  Ethnology  of  the  Congo 
Free  State,”  R.  Anthrop.  Inst.,  190 7.  He  noted  among  the  fetishes  of  the  eastern 
Bayanzi  the  male  emblem  in  various  forms  (called,  in  fact,  Mulume  or  “Male”). 
Usually  the  male  fetish  consisted  of  a shallow  basket  in  which  were  set  from  one  to 
four  phalli  made  of  clay.  These  were  anointed  with  kola  juice  when  being  prayed  to. 
Another  fetish  represented  the  female  principle.  Either  or  both  received  “worship” 
with  the  idea  of  propitiating  the  forces  they  symbolized,  and  thus  promoting  fertility 
amongst  the  women,  or  even  the  crops. 

According  to  Lord  Mountmorres,  in  many  parts  of  the  Mubangi  phallic  worship 
is  common,  probably  of  the  same  character  as  that  described  by  Torday  in  con- 
nection with  the  Bayanzi  of  the  Kasai. 


345.  A ROADSIDE  SHRINE,  ZOMBO  PLATEAU 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  639 


stealing  from  the  Mission,  invoked  the  curse  of  death  upon  himself  if 
he  were  guilty,  and  knocked  a nail  into  his  nkisi  (fetish)  as  a proof  of 
his  good  faith.  At  that  time  he  was  hale  and  well  built,  but  soon  grew 
meagre  and  thin,  and  in  three  months  he  was  scarcely  recognizable. 
At  last  he  came  to  Mr. 

Banks  and  asked  him  to 
pray  to  God  on  his  account, 
for  he  had  stolen  the  things, 
and  would  die  if  God  did 
not  forgive  him.” 

So  far  from  the  aver- 
age Congo  negro  being 
“materialistic”  in  his  con- 
ceptions of  the  world 
around  him,  he,  like  most 
savages,  is  profoundly 
“animistic.”  Everything 
of  importance  has  a 
“soul,”  an  impalpable 
spirit  behind  it.  Genii 
or  fairies1  are  believed 
in,  apart  from  the  souls 
of  men. 

Writing  of  the  Lokele 
tribe  on  the  northern 
Congo  near  Stanley  Falls, 
the  Rev.  W.  Millman  (of 
the  Baptist  Mission,  Ya- 
kusu)  writes 

“ Man  easily  perceives  a 
principle  of  suitability  that 
is  to  be  desired  and  worked 
towards  . . . and  also  a 
principle  of  mischief  that  is 
to  be  guarded  against.  ...  It 
is  not  surprising  that  every 
force  which  appears  to  work 


346.  FETISH  PLACED  AT  ENTRANCE  TO  VILLAGE 
ON  ZOMBO  PLATEAU,  TO  DRIVE  AWAY  EVIL 
SPIRITS 


1 These  in  the  Kongo  language  are  called  Shimbi.  Amongst  the  Babangi  they 
are  known  as  Bakula.  They  are  the  Ngulu  of  South-West  Tanganyika  and  the 
Mipashi  of  South-East  Congoland  (Luapula).  In  many  Congo  countries  they  are 
thought  to  haunt  streams,  cascades,  whirlpools.  They  are  supposed  to  have  wrought 
the  great  chasms  in  the  hillsides — which  as  a matter  of  fact  are  usually  the  work  of 
water — and  they  are  also  the  causes  of  whirlwinds.  “ Sometimes  they  become  in- 
carnate ” (writes  Bentley).  “A  pregnant  woman  dreams  of  fairies  or  of  water,  and 
then  knows  that  her  child  is  the  incarnation  of  a shimbi  The  child  grows  up  with 
this  reputation,  and  takes  advantage  of  it  to  demand  presents  from  its  relations  on 
account  of  its  privileged  fairy  nature. 


640  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

in  accordance  with  either  of  these  principles  is  made  into  a sort  of 
divinity  and  given  a shadowy  kind  of  personality,  that  coincidences  are 
counted  as  proofs,  and  that  the  easy,  mobile  mind  of  the  native  has 
rushed  off  on  tracks  of  wildest  superstition.” 

In  the  “animism”  of  these  people,  he  says,  every  natural 
object  has  its  proper,  resident  spirit. 

“ When  a thing  breaks  up  or  wears  out,  it  is  said  to  be  dead,  the 
assumption  being  that  its  spirit  has  departed.  A girl  not  growing  so 
fast  as  she  desires  learns  from  the  older  women  of  the  tribe  that  her 
development  may  be  hastened  by  weeping  at  the  foot  of  a thorn  tree  at 
night.  She  seeks  out  a thorn  tree,  and  there  one  evening,  beating  her 
breast,  she  sobs  until  tears  run  down  on  to  the  ground,  and,  in  due 
time,  she  grows  as  she  has  desired.  The  natives  at  Yakusu  do  not  say 
that  there  is  a spirit  presiding  over  the  thorn  trees  that  can  only  be 
approached  through  thorn  trees,  neither  do  they  assert  that  the  tears  are 
a gift  to  the  tree  or  to  its  supposed  resident  spirit.  But  while  our  people 
do  not  declare  the  presence  of  an  indwelling  spirit  in  their  charms  and 
amulets,  they  nevertheless  assert  the  advantages  of  wearing  them 
because  of  the  spirits.  It  seems  as  if  the  primitive,  fearsome  soul  of 
man  is  content  with  his  phylactery,  without  troubling  overmuch  about 
the  mystery  of  its  working.  However,  this  is  not  to  say  that  they  deny 
the  existence  of  spirits  and  spiritual  influences,  though,  as  far  as  appears 
to  me  at  present,  the  spirits  most  generally  recognized  are  those  of  their 
own  people,  living  or  dead. 

“ A man  in  trouble  will  call  on  the  name  of  some  known  ancestor  or 
deceased  friend  and  ask  him  to  help  him,  but  makes  no  specific  sacrifice 
or  offering.  Any  man  may  do  it  without  the  help  of  a priest.  A man 
in  declining  health  may  be  permitted  by  such  a spirit  to  see  the  shade 
of  the  man  responsible  for  his  sickness.  It  is  generally  believed  that 
such  a vision  portends  the  death  of  the  sufferer,  failing  the  intervention 
of  this  responsible  person.  It  seems  strange,  but  it  may  have  no  real 
significance,  that  on  the  first  appearance  the  shade  generally  shows  only 
its  back,  and  is  not  always  recognized.  On  a second  or  third  appear- 
ance it  shows  its  face.  A message  is  immediately  sent  to  the  inimical 
individual  informing  him  that  the  malevolent  state  of  his  heart  is  known, 
and  that  he  must  come  and  pour  water  over  the  head  of  the  sick  person. 
I have  known  a man  to  paddle  himself  over  thirty  miles  against  stream 
to  respond  to  such  a summons. 

“ To  come  instantly  would  obviously  lend  some  support  to  the 
charge,  which  doubtless  often  has  some  foundation  in  fact,  and  such 
bewitchery  is  punishable  by  fine.  The  offender  generally  declines  the 
invitation  until  he  is  promised  exemption,  when  he  at  once  puts  in  an 
appearance.  The  sick  man  is  carried  down  to  the  nearest  running 
water,  and  the  alleged  bewitcher  takes  a piece  of  a broken  pot,  scoops 
up  some  water,  and  pours  it  over  the  invalid’s  head.  Such  is  the  faith 
in  this  operation  that  of  a dozen  cases  noted  not  one  failed  to  restore 
health — for  a time.” 


According  to  Torday,  the  Bay  aka  of  the  Kwango- Kwilu 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  641 

believe  in  the  existence  of  an  imperishable  principle  or  soul, 
which  they  call  doshi.  It  leaves  the  body  at  death,  and  may 
visit  the  living  in  dreams.  It  may  inspire  the  living  with 
evil  thoughts,  and  will  reproach  them  if  the  grave  is  neglected. 
Under  some  fortunate  conditions  the  soul  of  a man  may  enter 
the  body  of  a large  animal.  A man  who  has  been  killed  in 
battle  may  send  his  soul  to  avenge  his  death  on  the  person  who 
killed  him.  The  latter,  however,  can  escape  the  dead  man’s 
vengeance  by  wearing  the  red  tail-feathers  of  the  parrot  in  his 
hair  and  painting  his  forehead  red.  The  Bayaka  consider  that 
big  animals  have 
souls,  but  no  inani- 
mate object  can  pos- 
sess a spirit.  Souls 
are  thought  to  fly 
about  in  the  air. 

The  Ba-huana  of 
the  great  Kwilu 
River  believe  that 
man  is  composed  of 
three  principles  : 
body,  soul  ( bun , 
which  also  means 
“heart”),  and  a spirit 
or  phantom  — doshi 
— which  is  a kind  of 
“ double.” 

“ The  bun  or  soul 
of  a dead  man  ‘ who 
has  had  no  fetishes  ’ 
can  appear  to  other 
men  ; such  an  apparition,  called  fakulu , occurs  at  night  only,  and 
the  bun  is  seen  in  human  form  and  appears  to  be  composed  of  a 
white  misty  substance.  It  portends  approaching  death.  The  doshi 
is  a shadowy  second  self,  corresponding  to  the  kra  of  the  /^-speaking 
tribes  of  the  Gold  Coast  and  the  ka  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians.  It 
leaves  the  body  in  sleep  and  visits  other  people  in  dreams  ; the  doshi  of 
the  dead  appear  to  the  living  in  the  same  manner.  All  people  have  doshi , 
but  only  the  adult  have  bun . In  the  case  of  a man  killed  by  lightning, 
his  bun  is  supposed  to  be  destroyed  ; but  suicide  leaves  both  bun  and 
doshi  intact.  Animals  have  doshi , but  not  bun.  At  death  the  bun  dis- 
appears, no  one  knows  whither,  but  the  doshi  lingers  about  in  the  air,  visits 
its  friends  and  haunts  its  enemies ; it  will  persecute  the  relations  if  the 
body  has  not  received  proper  burial  ; there  are  no  means  of  exorcising 
it.  In  the  case  of  a man  who  has  been  the  possessor  of  many  fetishes, 
the  bun  enters  the  body  of  some  large  animal — elephant,  hippo,  buffalo, 
11. — L 


347.  A FETISH  HUT  AT  THE  ENTRANCE  TO  A 
ZOMBO  TOWN  (ZOMBO  PLATEAU) 


642  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

or  leopard ; animals  so  possessed  are  recognized  by  their  ferocity. 
Fetishes  have  doshi , but  no  bun;  plants  and  weapons  have  neither.” 
(E.  Torday  and  T.  A.  Joyce.) 

Much  the  same  belief  prevails  among  the  Bambala  of  the 
same  Kwilu  region,  except  that  they  call  the  bun  element 
mtyema — an  older  Bantu  root- word  for  “ heart.” 

The  Baluba  of  South-Central  Congoland  believe  that 
death  is  in  no  way  a separation  of  soul  and  body  : it  is 
a simple  stoppage  of  the  heart,  produced  either  by  a fatal 
accident,  or  by  the  power  of  a sorcerer,  or  still  more  likely 
by  an  act  of  the  spirit  of  a deceased  relative.  A father, 
mother,  brother,  etc.,  having  died  before,  is  weary  down 
below  in  the  other  world  ; he  cannot  endure  being  separated 
from  a being  loved  on  earth  ; he  goes  to  find  Kabezya-mpungu 
(God).  “ Master,”  he  says,  “ I am  sad  ; I am  without 
friends  in  the  land  of  the  dead ; it  would  be  so  pleasant 
for  me  to  see  at  my  side  such  an  one  whom  I love  ; please 
set  him  beside  me  that  he  may  bear  me  company  and  comfort 
me  in  this  cold  and  damp  earth  ” ; and  Kabezya-mpungu, 
yielding  to  this  request,  despatches  above  the  ground  either  the 
afflicted  relative,  or  a spirit,  or  some  deceased  person.  The 
messenger  arrives  and  fastens  upon  him  whom  he  has  come  to 
summon  ; this  is  sickness,  and  when  God  gives  him  the  signal 
he  begins  to  compress  the  heart  until  it  has  ceased  to  beat ; this 
is  the  death  agony.  That  is  why  they  say  of  a sick  man — such 
an  one  has  seized  him,  has  fastened  on  to  him  ; and  of  a dead 
man — God  has  visited  him,  the  All  Powerful  has  got  possession 
of  him  ; or  again — his  father  has  called  him,  his  mother  has 
slain  him.  Of  a baby  dying  shortly  after  its  mother,  they  say, 
its  mother’s  milk  calls  it.  It  sometimes  happens  that  the  one 
who  causes  death  is  a sorcerer  ; he  procures  from  a wizard  or 
cannibal  some  fragments  of  human  knuckle-bones  ; he  mixes 
them  with  other  ingredients  in  careful  quantities.  Immediately 
the  power  of  death  accrues  to  the  owner  of  the  fragments  of 
bone.  With  this  help  he  approaches  an  individual  and  com- 
presses his  throat  and  heart. 

After  death  has  taken  place  the  Baluba  believe  that  the  soul 
continues  to  reside  unimpaired  in  the  corpse,  with  the  possi- 
bility of  detaching  itself,  not  freely  and  untrammelled,  but  in 
association  with  a vague,  impalpable  something,  a kind_  of 
phantom  or  spectre  which  has  the  exact  appearance  of  the  dead 
body,  but  has  not  its  real  substance.  It  is  under  this  shadowy 
form,  which  is,  in  short,  the  dematerialized  body,  that  the  soul 
will  henceforth  live  in  the  realm  of  the  dead.  The  Baluba 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  643 


believe  that  the  soul  itself  is  a principle  distinct  from  the  body 
and  endowed  with  a more  ethereal  nature,  but  unfit  to  exist 
alone  without  some  veil  or  phantom.  This  phantom  has  not 
always  the  exact  shape  of  a human  being ; for  instance,  those 
whose  flesh  has  served  for  the  feasts 
of  cannibals  will  have  the  appearance 
of  a dried  skeleton,  those  whose 
bodies  have  been  burnt  will  for  ever 
appear  as  a wreath  of  smoke  drop- 
ping an  ashy  dust. 

Bentley  remarks  that  the  Bakongo 
do  not  regard  death  as  the  cessation 
of  life.  “If  any  one  dies,  they  think 
that  some  one  else  has  established  a 
connection  with  the  spirit  world  and 
has  ‘witched  away’  the  deceased.” 

Their  ideas  as  to  the  world  of  the 
dead  are  vague.  The  oldest  idea — 
and  that  of  Central  Congoland  also 
— is  a country  of  dark  forest.1  The 
Bayanzi  sometimes  think  dead  people 
go  to  the  sky.  Until  recently  it  was 
believed  by  the  coast  Congo  tribes 
(since,  let  us  say,  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century)  that  their  dead 
went  to  a world  at  the  bottom  of  the 
sea  and  there  spent  their  time — un- 
happy spirits ! — as  slaves  to  the  white 
man,  making  cloth  and  trade  goods. 

Among  the  Baluba ,2  when  a sick 
man  has  breathed  his  last,  his  relatives 
place  over  his  eyes  a thick  bandage  ; 
his  gaze  would  bring  misfortune  upon 
them  ; for  through  those  eyes,  glazed 
by  death,  his  surviving  soul  sees 
everything.  The  body  is  then 
washed,  shaved,  anointed  with  oil, 
and,  in  accordance  with  the  greater  or 
less  degree  of  wealth  he  has  enjoyed, 
dressed  in  beads,  bracelets,  and  cloth.  These  objects  will  enable 
him  to  provide  for  his  first  necessities  in  the  other  world.  His 


348.  A CARVED  FETISH  OF 
THE  SOUTHERN  BAMBALA 
PEOPLE  (S.W.  CONGOLAND, 
TORDAY) 


1 Mfiiida  in  Kongo. 

2 Much  of  these  descriptions  of  Baluba  beliefs  and  customs  have  been  collected 
by  Grenfell  and  Torday  from  the  reports  of  Roman  Catholic  missionaries  on  the 
Kasai. 


644  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

family  and  friends,  informed  with  all  speed  of  the  fatal  termina- 
tion, hasten  to  lay  by  the  deceased  some  beads  or  a piece  of  cloth 
and  assemble  to  lament.  Among  certain  neighbouring  tribes 
these  lamentations  take  the  form  of  a plaintive  chant,  soft  and 
cadenced  : among  the  Baluba,  on  the  contrary,  there  are  cries, 
howls,  a wild  cacophony,  and  the  louder  and  more  clamorous  it 
is,  the  better  it  expresses  grief.  To  listen  to  them,  one  would 
think  them  ready  to  die  of  grief.  “ Woe,  woe  is  me,  I have 
lost  my  dear  one,  my  joy.  He  whose  words  used  to  delight  me, 
whose  sight  used  to  comfort  me,  is  no  more.  Woe  is  me! 
What  is  going  to  become  of  me  ? Oh  ! cruel  spirits  who  have 
carried  him  away  from  me,  you  make  me  suffer  death.  And 
you,  guardian  spirits  of  my  dear  one,  and  you,  my  preservers, 
give  him  back  to  me,  for  I die  ; I am  dead  already  ” ; and  it 
goes  on  in  this  style  for  whole  hours,  while  copious  tears  run 
down  their  cheeks.  But  to  mourn  thus  without  relaxation 
would  be  really  too  much  of  a punishment ; from  one  time  to 
another  they  go  to  inhale  some  puffs  at  the  common  pipe  and 
to  console  themselves  a little  with  their  neighbours,  in  order  to 
give  way  afterwards  to  a new  outburst  of  grief  and  be  able  to 
turn  on  a new  torrent  of  tears.  To  prove  still  further  the  depth 
of  their  affliction,  they  encircle  their  brows  and  loins  with  fibres 
of  banana  tree,  just  like  sick  men  wasting  with  fever. 

If  the  deceased  has  been  one  of  a brotherhood,  all  the  mem- 
bers in  the  neighbourhood  gather  before  the  dwelling  and  devote 
themselves  to  boisterous  dances,  for  a small  consideration. 

As  regards  burial  ceremonies , the  remains  of  a young  child 
in  most  parts  of  the  Congo  are  wrapped  in  a rush  mat  and 
buried  in  the  corner  of  the  mother’s  hut.  Except,  however, 
first-born  and  twins.  The  former  of  these  has  for  a coffin  a 
pitcher  or  jar,  the  latter  some  leaves  of  banana  trees.  An  adult 
is  not  always  buried  immediately ; as  a preliminary,  it  is 
necessary  either  to  consult  the  sorcerer  as  to  the  cause  of  death 
or  to  arrange  business  matters. 

Among  the  Baluba,  if  the  deceased  is  a married  woman, 
her  husband  will  first  have  to  pay  her  family  a slave  or  his 
equivalent  in  trade  goods.  While  waiting  the  day  of  burial,  the 
body  lies  outside  under  a little  roof  of  thatch  ; mourners  of  both 
sexes  take  up  their  position  round  about  in  separate  groups. 
This  may  last  four  or  five  days  or  more  ; the  body  as  it  decom- 
poses gives  out  an  unbearable  smell,  but  this  little  troubles  the 
Baluba.  When  matters  are  comfortably  adjusted,  the  body  is 
put  into  its  coffin,  which  most  commonly  is  only  a plain  mat. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  645 

Frequently,  however  [especially  in  the  case  of  people  of  note],  a 
large  wicker  basket  is  provided — a sort  of  panier  with  a lid. 
The  stiffened  limbs  are  then  forcibly  bent,  the  joints  made  flex- 
ible if  necessary  with  the  handle  of  a hoe,  and  the  body  is 
restored  to  the  position  of  a man  squatting  on  the  ground, 
embracing  his  knees.  The  body,  thus  bound,  is  enclosed  in 
the  panier. 

At  sunset  the  family  deputes  two  men  to  proceed  with  the 
burial  ; one  is  given  a hoe,  the  other  a hatchet.  They  hang 
the  coffin  on  a long  pole  and  bear  it  away  in  silence,  followed 
only  by  a few  near  relatives.  In  this  way  they  proceed  to  the 


349.  THE  CORPSE  OF  A WOMAN  DECORATED  AND  LAID  OUT  READY  FOR 
BURIAL  (BOPOTO,  NORTHERN  CONGO) 


scrub  or  the  forest  in  the  darkness,  avoiding  by  all  means  in 
their  power  the  gaze  of  strangers.  Then,  by  the  uncertain 
light  of  a fire  of  reeds,  they  hastily  dig  the  grave,  and  after 
having  placed  their  burden  in  it,  they  carefully  level  the  earth, 
that  one  may  be  able  to  see  at  a glance  whether  the  grave  has 
remained  intact  or  been  violated.  This  precaution  is  not  un- 
necessary. The  cannibals,  in  short,  are  always  on  the  watch  to 
find  a new  grave  and  rob  it  of  the  body  under  cover  of  the 
darkness. 

As  soon  as  the  sun  has  reappeared  on  the  horizon  the 
house  of  the  deceased  is  set  on  fire  ; to  sleep  in  it  after  it  has 
sheltered  a corpse  would  be  to  expose  oneself  to  certain  death. 
Then  grave-diggers  repair  to  the  river,  throw  into  it  their 


646  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

mourning-bands,  wash  and  rub  themselves  with  white  ochre  all 
over  the  body.  Soon  afterwards  one  of  them  builds  near  his 
house  a small  hut ; it  is  there  that  henceforth  the  dead  man  will 
come  to  receive  the  honours,  requests,  and  condolences  of  the 
living.  Before  the  entrance  of  this  little  temple  of  the  dead 
is  dug  a ditch  which  is  filled  with  water  mingled  with  flour ; 
another  is  dug  close  beside  it,  and  in  it  is  placed  a pot  pierced 
at  the  bottom,  into  which  palm  wine  is  poured.  This  is  the 
dead  man’s  meal. 

The  death  of  a Muyctnzi  who  is  rich  or  enjoys  a certain  in- 
fluence gives  rise  to  a series  of  ceremonies  most  interesting  to 

watch.  As  soon  as 
the  deceased  has 
breathed  his  last 
his  body  is  washed 
all  over  and  is  next 
covered  with  fancy 
paintings.  The  legs 
are  bent  in  such  a 
way  as  to  raise  the 
knees  as  high  as 
possible,  and  are 
kept  in  that  posi- 
tion by  bands  made 
of  tree  bark  or  of 
native  cloth.  The 
body  is  then 
wrapped  in  the 
richest  cloths  left 
by  the  deceased,  and  after  this  operation  presents  the  appear- 
ance of  an  immense  muff  of  many  colours,  as  broad  as  high, 
crowned  by  a variegated  head,  the  dull  eyes  of  which  are  wide 
open. 

Thus  dressed  up,  the  corpse  is  exposed  in  front  of  the  hut 
inhabited  before  death  ; and  for  eight  or  ten  days  the  natives 
of  the  village  and  those  of  the  neighbouring  towns  come  to 
perform  round  the  corpse  funeral  dances,  accompanied  by  songs, 
rolling  of  drums,  and  discharges  of  guns.  The  noise  begins  at 
sunrise,  lasts  the  whole  day,  and  continues  sometimes  well  into 
the  night.  The  palm  wine  circulates  in  flowing  bowls,  and 
the  dancers  only  retire  when  they  are  exhausted  by  fatigue  or 
dead  drunk.  The  same  scenes  begin  next  day  and  the  follow- 
ing days,  till  the  time  when  the  decomposition  of  the  corpse  is 
advanced  to  the  point  of  infecting  the  neighbourhood. 


350.  A FUNERAL  DANCE  AT  BOLOBO  : WIVES  WAILING 
UNDER  THE  EAVES  OF  HOUSES 


351-  THE  funeral  of  chief  ekwayulu  at  bolobo 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  649 

Then  they  proceed  with  the  burial.  A hole  is  dug  in  the 
entrance  to  the  house  of  the  deceased,  and  the  body  placed 
there,  with  all  the  cloths  in  which  it  has  been  wrapped  since 
the  day  of  death.  In  the  mind  of  the  natives,  these  cloths  are 
destined  to  secure  the  comfort  of  him  who  is  no  more  on  the 
long  journey  he  has  just  undertaken.  Hence  the  richer  and 
more  powerful  the  deceased  was,  the  more  bulky  is  his  luggage 
beyond  the  grave.  Has  he  not  got  to  maintain  his  rank  in  the 
other  world  ? 

Among  the  Mongo , or  northern  Balolo,  the  ceremonies  are 
lengthy.  Slaves  wash  the  body  and  then  place  it  in  a hut,  where 
it  remains  for  one  and  even  two  months.  This  putrid  mass  is 
then  enclosed  in  a box,  carved,  painted,  and  mounted  with  points 
resembling  horns  ; then  the  whole  is  buried  after  having  been 
conducted  through  the  neighbouring  villages  to  the  sound  of 
songs  and  the  accompaniment  of  dancing. 

The  Bangata  (Equator)  take  care  to  put  the  dead  body  into 
communication  with  the  world  of  the  living  by  means  of  a tube, 
just  like  the  inhabitants  of  the  Cataract  region  of  the  Lower 
Congo. 

White  and  black  ornaments  are  prohibited  during  the  period 
of  mourning ; the  body  is  carried  by  all  the  inhabitants  of  the 
village  when  the  deceased  is  a chief. 

The  Bangala  were  until  recently  such  terrible  cannibals  that 
it  was  really  difficult  to  induce  them  to  bury  any  corpse  except 
in  their  own  stomachs.  When  they  did  commit  a person  to 
the  ground,  the  grave  was  only  a foot  deep,  and  its  exterior  was 
covered  with  provisions  intended  to  facilitate  the  dead  man’s 
future  existence. 

The  Bapoto,  neighbours  of  the  Bangala,  decorate  the  corpse 
with  collars,  bracelets,  glass  trinkets,  etc.,  and  the  villagers 
come  to  lament  and  sing  the  virtues  of  the  dead.  The  women 
mourners  wear  bands  of  green  leaves  round  their  bodies. 

In  the  Aruwimi  countries  people  are  buried  in  their  own 
house  in  shallow  graves,  and  one  or  two  slaves  are  slaughtered 
at  the  interment  that  the  master  may  not  arrive  in  the  other 
world  alone  like  a poor  outcast. 

Among  the  Manbettu  it  is  the  custom  to  bury  warriors  in 
the  place  where  they  have  fallen.  A kind  of  hut  is  erected 
over  their  tomb,  and  from  time  to  time  relatives  and  friends 
come  to  clean  the  grave,  and  place  on  it  baskets  filled  with  pro- 
visions and  jars  filled  with  water.  These  attentions,  they  say, 
give  pleasure  to  the  departed. 

The  poor  and  slaves  are  buried  in  an  ordinary  way,  or 


650  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

rather  the  body  is  given  over  to  the  good  offices  of  the  thousand 
insects  and  beasts  who  undertake  the  task  of  making  it  dis- 
appear  rapidly,  unless  the  corpse  is  eaten  by  human  grave- 
robbers. 

“ The  Abarambo  chief,  Mburo,  had  chosen  for  himself  a large  tree 
situated  a short  distance  from  his  house  ” (writes  Casati,  who  was  a wit- 
ness of  the  fact),  “ and  had  given  orders  that,  when  he  died,  they  should 
dig  a hole  in  its  upper  part  and  lay  him  there,  his  face  turned  towards 
heaven,  for  he  thought  it  dishonouring  for  a great  chief  to  be  brought 
into  close  contact  with  the  earth.” 

On  the  decease  of  an  Abarambo  [north  of  the  Wele],  the 
relatives  and  friends,  after  having  assembled  to  lament  for 
many  days  in  the  dead  man’s  hut,  perform  the  dance  of  the 
dead,  which  lasts  for  weeks  and  even  for  months,  according  to 
the  social  position  of  the  departed. 

If  it  is  a woman  who  is  dead,  the  husband  disappears  in  the 
bush  till  such  time  as  his  grief  is  assuaged.  He  blackens  his 
face,  binds  his  waist  with  a cord,  wears  nothing  but  an  old 
garment,  and  only  eats  raw  food  quite  unprepared. 

The  woman  who  has  lost  her  husband  acts  in  the  same 
way,  but  waits  before  returning  to  her  village  till  some  one  else 
succeeds  in  pleasing  and  purchasing  her. 

Amongst  the  Bantu  Ababua  and  Baieu  (Babati)  of  the 
Wele-Bomokandi  the  dead  are  buried  at  a depth  of  about 
three  feet  on  a bed  ; after  a month  they  are  exhumed  and 
buried  in  another  place.  This  ceremony  is  repeated  at  regular 
intervals  as  long  as  the  parents  live.  At  each  exhumation 
there  is  a renewed  lamentation,  and  if  the  bed  has  decayed 
a new  one  is  provided.  The  gifts  to  the  dead  consist  only  of 
food,  and  are  placed  on  the  grave.  An  Ababua  killed  in  war 
is  cremated,  to  prevent  his  being  eaten  by  the  enemy  ; the 
ashes  are  carried  to  his  village  and  buried  there. 

The  Baieu  before  burying  the  body  extract  its  entrails  and 
dry  the  corpse  for  several  weeks  ; all  objects  which  belonged  to 
the  deceased  are  put  into  the  grave  with  him.  The  sacrifice  of 
women  or  slaves  is  practised. 

Among  the  Nilotic  negroes  on  the  north-east  Congo  fron- 
tier interments  take  place,  often  in  the  interior  of  the  deceased’s 
house,  in  square  ditches,  into  which  the  body  is  lowered  and 
placed  in  a sitting  position  with  the  arms  folded  and  wrists 
fixed  to  the  shoulders.  When  they  are  filled  with  earth  and 
closed,  these  graves  are  sprinkled  with  ox  blood,  or  beer  in  the 
case  of  less  fortunate  persons. 

The  Azande  or  Nyamnyam  of  the  Wele-Mbomu  dress 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  651 

their  dead  in  their  finest  garments  or — in  the  case  of  chiefs — 
in  their  Arab  dress,  then  lower  them  into  a ditch,  where  they 
are  placed  seated  in  a coffin  cut  in  one  block  from  a tree.  The 
ditch  is  filled  up  with  earth  trampled  flat  and  a hut  is  raised  to 
mark  the  site. 

On  the  northern  Mubangi,  among  the  Sango , the  deceased 
is  buried  on  the  day  of  his  death,  wrapped  in  a native  cloth. 
Certain  articles  of  primary  necessity  and  provisions  are  also 


352.  A FUNERAL  DANCE  AMONGST  THE  BAPOTO,  NORTHERN  CONGO 


put  in  the  grave.  His  kinsmen  and  friends  go  into  mourning 
for  a month. 

When  death  is  evident,  they  try  to  wake  the  corpse  by 
making  a hideous  noise  close  to  his  ears  with  all  the  musical 
instruments  they  possess. 

Among  the  Banziri  of  the  north-west  Mubangi  the  ceremonies 
which  take  place  at  the  death  of  a chief  are  as  follows.  The 
relatives  assembled  in  the  hut  which  serves  as  mortuary  arrange 
the  corpse  in  a doubled-up  position  on  a kind  of  gridiron  of 
poles.  Then  they  kindle  a fire  under  the  body.  Receptacles 
of  baked  earth  are  placed  so  as  to  collect  the  melted  fat  which 
trickles  from  the  body  under  the  action  of  the  fire.  Those 
who  are  present  smear  faces  and  hands  with  this  fat,  rinse  it  off 
with  warm  water,  and  these  rinsings  are  drained  into  vessels 


652  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

and  drunk  by  the  relatives,  who  believe  that  in  this  way 
they  incorporate  in  themselves  the  virtues  and  qualities  of  the 
deceased. 

If  all  the  fat  is  not  used  up,  what  remains  of  it  is  sent  to 
absent  relatives  or  preserved  in  the  house  of  the  dead  man,  near 
the  corpse,  which  is  not  interred  until  it  is  in  advanced  decom- 
position and  the  flesh  begins  to  rot  off.  (Torday.) 

The  ceremonies  of  which  funerals  are  the  cause  among 
the  Nsakara  are  still  more  disgusting,  and  are  aggravated 
by  frightful  human  sacrifices  and  horrible  scenes  of  canni- 
balism. 

The  Buctka  and  the  Banza  of  the  left  bank  of  the  lower 
Mubanod  show  their  care  for  the  dead  in  a touching  manner. 
When  they  lose  one  who  is  dear  to  them,  they  make  a wooden 
statuette,  to  which  they  give  the  name  of  the  departed  child  or 
relative.  They  carefully  preserve  this  in  their  home,  surround- 
ing it  with  loving-  care. 

Father  Heymans,  of  New  Antwerp,  gives  the  following 
description  of  the  death  ceremonies  among  the  Ndolo  (the 
Balolo  people  on  the  lower  Lulongo)  : — 

“ After  death,  the  women  hasten  to  cover  the  body  with  a new 
coating  of  ngola  (red  bark  paste).  Next  with  the  aid  of  charcoal 
they  accentuate  the  black  of  the  eyebrows,  under  which  the  eyes  remain 
wide  open  as  well  as  the  mouth.  Further,  the  body,  painted  red,  is  girt 
with  a new  loin-cloth. 

“ While  the  women  proceed  with  this  dressing,  some  of  the  men 
have  gone  to  cut  four  long  and  firm  poles,  which  they  set  in  the  ground 
in  the  form  of  a quadrilateral  of  three  feet  each  way.  Sticks  fixed 
horizontally  bind  the  poles,  to  make  their  position  firm.  Finally,  at 
a height  of  twelve  feet,  trunks  of  banana  trees,  attached  to  the  poles, 
form  a seat. 

“ These  preparations  being  ended,  four  strong  men  hoist  the  corpse 
upon  the  seat  mentioned,  where,  the  body  being  seated,  a small  stick 
inserted  under  the  chin  keeps  the  head  in  a good  position,  while  the 
hands  are  spread  on  the  knees. 

“While  the  deceased  is  thus  enthroned  in  the  air,  women  and 
young  girls  seated  on  mats  around  this  strange  catafalque  weep, 
chant,  and  lament  in  a sad,  monotonous  tone.  Merely  a formal 
expression  of  grief  too,  for  soon  the  melody  becomes  weaker,  the 
weeping  girls  chatter  in  groups,  till,  returning  to  their  duties, 
they  begin  with  united  effort  a more  sonorous  and  mournful 
lamentation.  This  funeral  game  lasts  all  the  day,  often  in  spite  of 
squalls  and  showers. 

“ On  the  death  of  a freeman,  all  his  banana  trees  are  cut  down  and 
the  fruit  of  his  plantation  left  to  rot  on  a platform  without  any  one 
daring  to  touch  them  : the  penalty  of  death  would  be  inflicted  on  any 
one  guilty  of  so  doing.” 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  653 

Grenfell  writes  of  the  Bolobo  people  (Bayanzi,  Bamoie)  : — 

“ There  was  a dance  for  a woman  who  died  two  days  ago  at 
Bolobo.  A basket  of  fire  and  branches  and  roots  from  her  farm  as 
well  as  her  hoes  were  carried  in  procession  to  prevent  harm  to  the 
plantations.” 

The  Bateke  to  the  north  of  Stanley  Pool  bury  their  dead  in 
an  upright  position. 

The  Bahuana  (Kwilu  River)  bury  their  dead  in  a sitting 
posture  in  a grave  about  four  to  five  feet  deep,  with  a small 


353.  NATIVE  GRAVEYARD  AT  PALABALA,  NEAR  MATADI,  CATARACT  REGION. 
(Note  the  graves  marked  out  with  empty  gin  bottles  and  strewn  with  empty  rum  demijohns,  besides  crockery.) 


hut  erected  over  the  grave.  [If  any  one  is  killed  by  lightning, 
writes  Torday,  he  is  buried  lying  on  his  back  in  an  extended 
position.]  Among  the  Bayaka  the  corpse  is  painted  red  and 
arranged  in  a sitting  posture  with  the  knees  under  the  chin, 
and  the  hands  clasped  round  the  shins.  Among  the  northern 
Pygmies — and  possibly  all  other  sections  of  the  small  nomadic 
Forest  negroes — the  corpse  is  buried  in  the  ground  at  the  place 
where  death  has  taken  place,  without  any  ceremony  or  any  out- 
ward mark  to  indicate  the  grave. 

Grenfell  remarks  that  graves  all  over  Western  Congoland 
(Bakongo,  Bateke,  Bayanzi)  are,  in  the  case  of  men,  covered 
with  broken  pots  on  the  outside  ; to  these,  in  some  tribes,  im- 
plements and  weapons  are  added.  In  the  case  of  women  the 


654  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

pots  or  implements  are  buried  in  the  grave  with  the  corpse,  not 
strewn  on  the  outer  surface.  On  the  other  hand,  Torday  states 
that  in  the  case  of  the  Bay  aka  “ no  weapons  must  be  buried 
with  the  dead  ; if  by  chance  this  should  occur,  the  ghost  of  the 
deceased  visits  the  heir  three  nights  in  succession  and  on  the 
fourth  niorht  kills  him.”1 

O 

Over  much  of  Central  and  Northern  Congoland  a small  hut 
is  built  over  the  graves  of  persons  of  any  consequence.  In 
the  regions  between  the  Sankuru  and  Lulua  rivers  there  is 
a different  custom  noticed  by  Grenfell  in  1886.  “ The  Bakete ,” 

he  writes,  when  visiting  the  junction  of  the  Sankuru  and  Kasai, 
“ have  adopted  a curious  practice  of  marking  their  graves  by 
an  uprooted  tree  stuck  into  the  earth  with  the  trunk  down- 
wards. Their  burying-places — carefully  weeded — present  an 


354.  THE  GRAVE  OF  A NATIVE  CHIEF,  MONSEMBE  (BANGALA  COUNTRY) 


extraordinary  aspect  with  many  withered  tree  stumps  crowned 
by  gnarled  roots.” 

According  to  Grenfell,  the  Babangi  people  when  in  mourn- 
ing rub  themselves  with  soot  off  their  cooking-pots,  which  is 
mixed  into  an  adhesive  paste  with  palm  oil  ; on  the  other  hand, 

1 Lord  Mountmorres  thus  describes  (1905,  in  the  Journal  of  the  Society  0/  Arts) 
the  graves  of  the  Bantu  negroes  on  the  banks  of  the  lower  Mubangi : — 

“ A great  deal  has  been  done  in  organizing  and  persuading  the  natives  to  bury 
their  dead  in  regular  burial  grounds,  and  the  natives  take  considerable  care  of  their 
cemeteries  in  some  parts.  In  this  particular  case  there  was  a large  number  of  graves, 
all  of  which  were  covered  with  the  personal  appliances  that  were  necessary  during 
the  life  of  the  natives  who  were  buried  there.  There  were  cooking  utensils,  lengths 
of  cloth,  in  many  cases  a large  tin  trunk,  and  various  other  objects  distributed  on  the 
graves.  Each  one  of  these  objects,  whatever  its  nature,  was  damaged  beyond  repair, 
the  natives  saying  that  the  reason  for  this  was  to  prevent  the  evil  spirits  from  coming 
and  making  use  of  them  ; but  I rather  fancy  it  is  to  prevent  the  less  orderly  of  their 
fellow-tribesmen  from  coming  and  stealing  them  and  making  use  of  them.  At  any 
rate,  it  is  the  invariable  custom  to  damage  the  articles  that  are  put  on  the  graves. 
. . . The  graves  in  this  part  were  beautifully  kept  up  ; everything  deposited  on  them 
was  left  untouched,  and  there  was  no  need  to  damage  the  things.  All  the  little  cook- 
ing utensils  were  kept  at  one  end,  the  food  supply  at  the  other,  and  when  the  food 
decayed  it  was  swept  away  as  having  been  consumed  by  the  spirit  of  the  dead  man 
on  his  journey  to  the  other  world.” 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  655 

the  Bangala  (women,  at  any  rate)  coat  their  whole  body  with 
white  pipeclay  and  remain  absolutely  naked  of  clothing. 
Bangala  men  shave  their  heads. 

The  Azande  (Nyamnyam)  cut  their  hair  as  a sign  of  mourn- 
ing. As  they  much  value  long  hair,  real  or  artificial,  this  is 
a considerable  sacrifice  to  their  feelings. 

The  men  amongst  the  forest-dwelling  Balega  of  the  region 
between  the  Lualaba-Congo  and  the  north  end  of  Tanganyika 
cover  their  faces  with  a thick  coating  of  black  charcoal  paste. 
In  this  way  they  show  mourning  for  their  wives. 

The  Bahuana  men  paint  the  forehead  black,  the  women  of 
this  tribe  the  whole  face,  when  mourning  for  the  dead.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  mourning  colour  of  Bayaka  women  is  red.  The 
Bakongo  men  and  women  smear  face  and  hair  with  soot  and  oil. 

So  implicit  is  the  belief  in  a life  beyond  the  grave  on  the 
part  of  most  of  the  Congo  peoples  that  this  faith  actually 
causes  them  to  commit  terrible  cruelties  in  the  name  of  religion, 
not  only  in  connection  with  witchcraft  superstitions  (as  will  be 
seen  later),  but  in  the  ceremonies  that  attend  the  burial  of  kings, 
chiefs,  and  free  men  and  women. 

In  chapter  xvi.  I have  recounted  the  attempts  of  Grenfell 
to  check  the  “burial  murders”  among  the  Bayanzi  at  Bolobo. 
Here  is  an  extract  from  his  diary  dealing  with  the  Bayanzi  in 
the  Equator  district : — 

“4th  of  January  1889.  I learn  on  reaching  Lukolela  that  when 
Mangaba  and  another  chief  died  recently  some  dozen  people  were 
killed — Mangaba’s  principal  wife  for  one,  and  a little  child  for  a pillow  ! ” 

Burial  murders,  as  explained  in  chapter  xvi.,  are  due  to 
a logical  faith  in  a future  life.  The  beloved  husband  or  wife 
dies  and  the  spirit  of  the  man  or  woman  goes  to  the  world  of 
spirits.  Utensils,  implements,  weapons,  must  be  buried  or 
broken,  to  be  ready  to  hand  when  the  dead  person  awakes  in  the 
dim  “other  world.”  A personage  of  consequence,  still  more 
a great  chief,  must  not  go  to  the  spirit  world  without  wives  or 
attendant  slaves.  Husbands,  it  is  true,  are  not  obliged  to 
accompany  their  wives,  but  it  is  evident  that  (at  one  time) 
nearly  all  over  negro  Africa  widows  had  to  die  in  the  graves  of 
their  deceased  husbands.  Here  is  the  description  given  by 
a Belgian  missionary  of  the  death  of  a great  Baluba  chief : — 

“ When  an  important  Luba  chief  expires,  every  one,  great  or  small, 
must  mourn  in  a subdued  tone  ; the  members  of  all  the  brotherhoods 
come  before  the  house  where  the  body  lies  to  perform  dances ; the 


656  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

women  violently  strike  their  hatchet  and  hoe  against  each  other.  This 
deafening  hubbub  lasts  a day.  The  relatives  then  make  a distribution 
of  beads  among  all  the  dancers  and  the  tumult  ceases.  During  this 
time  a young  slave  is  obtained  ; his  neck  is  broken  by  a heavy  blow 
and  he  is  laid  by  the  corpse  for  two  days.  He  is  the  chiefs  boy  atten- 
dant. His  wives,  squatting  near  him,  do  not  cease  their  lamentations. 
Some  days  pass  in  this  way  without  other  incidents ; after  which  the 
stiffened  limbs  are  forcibly  bent  and  the  body  placed  in  its  wicker 
coffin.  In  the  house,  two  stages  are  raised,  one  above  the  other  ; on  the 
upper  one  is  placed  the  coffin,  on  the  lower  a large  earthen  pot.  The 
body  decomposes  ; a noxious  liquid  infested  with  maggots  escapes  from 
it  and  falls  into  the  receptacle  : it  is  left  there  for  several  weeks.  When 
the  body  is  ready,  that  is  to  say  when  the  nails  can  be  taken  off  easily, 
the  Musungi  (lit.  ‘ peacemaker  ’),  the  provisional  ‘ executor  ’ of  the 
deceased,  raises  the  lid  of  the  coffin,  removes  all  the  nails  from  the  feet 
and  hands,  and  the  belt  of  hippopotamus  hide,  the  badge  of  greatness, 
cuts  off  the  middle  finger  of  the  right  hand  and  a great  toe  and  places 
them  together  in  a hollowed  fruit,  which  is  placed  in  a small  basket 
with  a cone-shaped  cover.  The  bundle  is  entrusted  to  the  nephews  of 
the  deceased  ; they  proceed  to  hang  it  up  in  the  ancestral  hut.  One 
of  the  nephews  has  it  under  his  special  care,  and  is  responsible  for  the 
whole  under  pain  of  death  or  banishment.  At  this  time,  they  sacrifice 
a slave;  his  death  announces  the  event. 

“Finally  the  burial  is  proceeded  with.  The  important  men  of  the 
village,  followed  by  some  relatives,  proceed  by  day  or  night  towards  a 
shallow  marsh,  carrying  the  remains  of  the  deceased.  A great  chief 
can  never  go  thus  into  the  other  world  without  taking  away  a portion 
of  his  slaves ; and  so  whenever  the  funeral  procession  is  set  in  motion, 
two  men  are  beaten  to  death  with  clubs  and  thrown  across  the  public 
road  without  burial ; it  is  their  mission  to  tell  passers-by  that  their 
master  has  gone  along  that  way  to  his  last  dwelling.  As  soon  as  the 
site  of  the  grave  has  been  selected,  the  men  build  a large  square  barrier 
of  grass  and  weed,  drain  off  the  water  which  is  within,  and  set  to  work 
with  feverish  activity  to  dig  a deep  ditch  of  about  six  feet,  taking  care 
to  keep  the  side  walls  well  hollowed  out ; and  forthwith  two  female 
slaves  of  the  dead  man,  who  have  as  a preliminary  been  decked  in  their 
finest  attire,  descend  of  their  own  accord  [or  by  force,  and  in  spite  of 
their  laments  and  sobs]  to  the  bottom  of  this  tomb,  lie  on  their  sides 
face  to  face,  and  stretching  out  the  arm  which  is  next  the  ground, 
embrace  the  decomposed  remains  of  their  master.  The  jar  containing 
the  liquid  and  worms  I have  described  is  emptied  and  broken  in  the 
grave.  These  poor  women,  mad  with  misery,  do  not  always  show 
themselves  eager  to  fulfil  the  task  required  of  them  at  the  funeral  ; for 
that  reason  they  are  usually  bound,  or  sometimes  their  skulls  are  merci- 
fully broken.  During  that  time,  six  slaves  brought  for  the  purpose  are 
butchered  and  their  bodies  placed  in  the  hollowed  walls ; then  the  ditch 
is  quickly  filled  up,  and  the  marsh  water,  escaping  over  the  barrier, 
makes  its  way  in  and  covers  this  sad  spot  with  a silence  which  will  be 
broken  for  a moment,  some  months  later,  by  the  piercing  cries  of  new 
victims.  In  short,  the  same  grave-diggers  will  return  to  the  grave, 
bringing  a man  in  bonds  whom  they  will  force  to  build  a wooden 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  657 

enclosure  on  the  edge  of  the  marsh  ; when  he  shall  have  accomplished 
his  task,  one  of  them  will  drive  into  his  breast  the  head  of  his  lance, 
crush  his  head,  and  lay  him  in  a ditch  beside  the  chief.  Then  a few 
days  before  the  arrival  of  a successor  at  the  dead  chief’s  village,  they 
will  go  again  with  a slave  and  some  jars  of  beer,  force  the  wretched 
man  to  pull  out  all  the  stakes  and  drop  all  the  jars  in  a small  ditch  ; 
then  they  will  kill  him  likewise,  and  bury  him  on  the  other  side  of  the 
grave.  The  departed  is  satisfied  ; his  successor  may  come.” 

A Belgian  missionary  on  the  northern  Mubangi  describes 
thus  the  funeral  of  a chieftain  among  the  Nsakara : — 


355.  THE  GRAVE  OF  A NATIVE  NOTABILITY  IN  THE  BUJA  COUNTRY, 
NEAR  BUMBA,  NORTHERN  CONGO 


“ On  a bed,  in  an  immense  circular  ditch,  his  head  resting  on  the  arm 
of  his  favourite  wife,  is  laid  the  body  of  the  deceased,  dressed  in  his 
richest  attire  ; around  him,  attached  to  stakes,  the  strangled  bodies  of  the 
wives  who  have  been  unwilling  to  survive  their  husband  ; thrown  pell- 
mell  in  the  ditch,  the  bodies  of  slaves  and  servants  who  have  worked  for 
the  dead  man  ; such  is  the  hideous  spectacle  presented  to  a crowd, 
craving  for  pain  and  slaughter.  The  ditch  is  filled  up,  and  on  the  newly 
piled  earth  begins  the  sacrifice  of  the  victims  destined  for  the  feasts 
celebrated  in  memory,  of  him  whom  they  are  lamenting.  . . . 

“ These  repasts  of  human  flesh  last  many  days.” 

Among  the  northern  Balolo  (or  Ndolo)  of  the  Lulongo 
River  a few  slaves  and  sometimes  several  wives  are  killed  on 
the  death  of  a chief.  A Congo- Balolo  missionary  told  Grenfell 

II. — M 


658  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

he  had  seen  the  grave  of  a chief  who  was  lately  dead.  One  of 
the  chief’s  wives,  slaughtered  for  the  occasion,  lay  by  his  side 
in  the  same  ditch  ; and  the  same  missionary  heard  that  fifteen 
slaves  had  been  sacrificed  and  eaten  at  the  funeral  ceremony. 

Among  the  Bena  Kcinyoka  or  Balungu  of  the  middle  San- 
kuru  the  death  of  chiefs  also  gives  rise  to  massacres  : they  bury 
with  the  deceased  a quantity  of  provisions  and  young  girls 
whose  limbs  have  been  broken  by  the  blows  of  a wooden  club. 
The  same  practice  is  found  amongst  the  Baruay  farther  to  the 
east,  and  was  recorded  by  Cameron. 

Burial  murders  have  lone  since  been  absent  from  the  funeral 
customs  of  the  Kongo  tribes  on  either  side  of  the  Lower  Congo, 
the  Bateke  and  kindred  tribes  between  Stanley  Pool,  the  Kwa 
River,  and  the  Sanga,  the  Bayaka  and  other  peoples  of  the 
Kwango,  the  A-lunda , Bakioko,  and  most  of  the  tribes  dwell- 
ing west  of  the  main  Kasai.  On  the  east  they  are  no  longer 
heard  of  beyond  the  Lualaba  and  among  the  eastern  Bantu  or 
the  Nilotic  negroes.  The  practice  is  one  more  associated  with 
forest-dwelling  negroes.  It  once  existed  in  Uganda,  and  was 
certainly  present  (centuries  ago)  throughout  all  West  Africa 
from  the  Gold  Coast  to  Angola. 

Closely  bound  up  with  religious  belief  is  the  question  of 
sorcery , the  exercise  of  occult  powers,  which  plays  such  a leading 
part  in  the  social  life  of  all  pagan  negroes  above  the  low  culture 
stage  of  the  Pygmies  and  Bushmen. 

In  all  negro  communities,  with  the  above-mentioned  doubt- 
ful exceptions,  where  there  has  been  no  recent  interference  of 
the  white  man  and  no  conversion  to  Islam  or  Christianity, 
there  are,  from  primitive  times,  two  pillars  of  society : the 
Chief  (king,  judge,  magistrate,  leader  in  battle)  and  the 
Magician  (sorcerer,  medicine-man,  priest,  lawyer).  Some- 
times— rarely — the  two  functions  are  combined  in  the  same 
individual,  a Prince- Bishop,  a warrior  who  is  also  head 
magician.  But  although  the  village  or  tribal  chief  may  often 
conduct  the  religious  rites  of  the  community,1  he  usually  leaves 
the  laws,  police,  medicine,  meteorology,  prophecy,  and  practical 
science  of  the  tribe  to  a distinct  functionary,  the  Magician,  the 
wise  man  (or  woman,  for  a woman  may  equally  exercise  these 
functions),  the  “Nganga”  of  Bantu  Africa. 

The  genesis  of  the  African  chief  was  (1)  strongest  and 
bravest  man  of  the  community,  boldest  Hunter,  fiercest  Fighter. 

1 Note  Torday’s  remarks  on  Bayanzi  Chiefs,  p.  141,  Journal  of  Royal  Anthropo- 
logical Institute , 1907. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  659 

The  Magician  represents  the  triumph  of  mind  over  matter,  of 
cunning  and  intelligence  over  mere  muscular  strength  and 
physical  beauty.1 

The  sorcerer  in  Congoland  has  often  great  powers  of  hypno- 
tism over  other  persons  and  over  his  own  mind.  He  deludes 
himself  quite  as  much  as  his  fellow  man  or  woman.  He  spreads 
strange  beliefs  among  his  adepts,  so  that  vast  masonic  or  cryptic 
organizations  may  arise  in  a negro  nation,  believing  themselves 
possessed  of  supernatural  powers  and  assisting  their  faith  by 
strange  and  often  horrible  rites,  such  as  those  of  the  Bakanzanzi, 
described  in  chapter  xvi. 

Baluba-Bakuba  peoples  between  Kasai  and  Sankuru  are 
singularly  superstitious,  and  wizards,  occult  practices,  mysteri- 
ous guilds  and  brotherhoods  abound  in  this  fertile,  rankly 
forested  region.  The  Baluba  sorcerers  ( baloshi , bena  mifongo , 
batempeshi,  etc.)  believe,  amongst  other  tenets,  that  they  can 
make  themselves  and  their  adepts  invisible  by  means  of  certain 
charms.  Once  invisible  (or  believing  themselves  so),  they  can 
indulge  in  horrible  ghoulish  practices  or  in  disgusting  im- 
moralities. 

Here  are  some  Baluba  magicians’  receipts  for  making  spells 
that  will  bring  death  to  those  whom  they  want  to  injure  : — 

The  spell-weaver  first  provides  himself  with  the  body  of  a 
very  large  beetle,  probably  the  Goliath  Beetle.  The  empty 
receptacle  of  the  insect  is  crammed  with  small  human  knuckle- 
bones and  red  scrapings  of  Kakula  (camwood).  If  such  a 
beetle  (which  is  about  two  and  a half  inches  long)  cannot  be 
found,  then  he  takes  a small  horn  of  sheep,  goat,  or  antelope 
and  fills  it  similarly.  He  puts  this  object  in  his  mouth  and 
thereupon  becomes  invisible.  The  sorcerer  next  procures  a 
Tragelaphus  horn  filled  with  various  ingredients  and  encloses 
this  in  the  very  long  pod  of  the  Kigelia  tree.  At  the  moment 
of  casting  the  spell,  he  adds  to  the  hidden  beetle  or  horn  a paste 
made  of  charcoal,  then  covers  up  the  whole  pod  and  its  con- 
tents with  a piece  of  native  cloth  tied  with  a small  plait  and 
wooden  pins.  Armed  with  this  he  betakes  himself  to  the  house 
of  the  person  whom  he  seeks  to  bewitch.  Before  the  thres- 

1 Here  written  down  and  translated  by  the  Rev.  W.  H.  Stapleton  is  a northern 
Congo  tradition  regarding  “ The  making  of  a medicine-man ” (amongst  the  Ngombe). 

“The  ghosts  call  him  from  the  bowels  of  the  earth.  He  goes  into  the  grave, 
underground,  and  stays  there  four  months.  When  the  four  months  are  finished  he 
comes  forth,  rubs  himself  with  camwood,  and  dances,  contorting  his  body.  Whenever 
a man  is  sick  he  is  carried  by  others  to  the  Nganga.  They  accompany  him  to  the  man 
of  ghosts.  He  looks  at  the  body,  then  recites  to  the  spirit  (?  the  embodiment  of  the 
disease).  They  lift  up  the  man  and  go  out.  All  the  people  dance,  and  he  who  is 
afflicted  with  sickness  is  brought  to  the  doctor  for  medicine.” 


66o  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


hold  of  his  victim’s  dwelling  he  digs  a hole,  places  in  it  the 
wrapped-up  magic  horn,  covers  up  everything,  and  scatters 
twigs  and  shavings  over  the  surface.  The  sleeper  wakes  and 
tries  to  go  out,  but  the  moment  he  touches  with  his  foot  one  of 
the  twigs,  his  leg  contracts,  his  sinews  shrivel,  and  he  falls  back 
dying  on  his  mat.  The  wizard  takes  up  his  horn  and  dis- 
appears, rejoicing  at  the  success  of  his  enterprise. 

Another  plan  is  for  the  Muloshi  or  sorcerer  to  place  the 
magic  horn  on  the  road  which  his  victim  will  take  to  reach  the 
water.  The  moment  he  steps  over  it  he  falls  and  dies.  Or 
the  Muloshi  places  two  straws  on  the  threshold  of  the  door  at 
the  house  of  the  doomed  person,  two  at  the  back  of  the  house, 
and  two  on  the  path  leading  from  the  dwelling  to  the  water- 
side. Then  he  draws  water  from  the  victim’s  accustomed 
water  supply,  boils  it,  fetches  the  straws  from  house  and  path, 
and  throws  them  into  the  water.  As  the  water  evaporates  the 
victim  pines  away. 

A third  spell  is  to  take  grass  from  beneath  the  tree  which 
has  often  sheltered  his  victim,  bind  it  in  small  bundles,  and  hang 
it  up  in  his  house;  when  it  is  dry,  his  enemy  has  quitted  this  world. 
Or  very  often,  again,  he  fashions  a wooden  figure  and  then  cuts 
it  in  pieces,  which  he  throws  in  boiling  water  ; when  the  last  is 
thrown  in  the  victim  has  ceased  to  live.  Finally,  the  sorcerer, 
again,  may  take  a pinch  of  flour  prepared  for  him  on  whom  he 
wishes  to  cast  his  spell,  some  red  feathers  and  shavings  of  nkula 
(red  dye-wood),  and  stuff  them  into  a small  hollowed  pumpkin, 
drive  in  a native  nail  with  two  blows,  then  throw  the  whole  into 
boiling  oil  and  leave  it  to  cool : his  enemy  dies  at  the  same  time. 
It  is  needless  to  say  that  these  spells  are  carried  out  in  secrecy, 
and  are  in  most  cases  only  asserted  to  have  been  executed  by 
the  wizard  to  account  for  an  opportune  death. 

But  the  Baluba  sorcerers  also  assert  that  they  can  steal  away 
a man’s  personality  and  leave  his  body  a mere  mindless  auto- 
maton, “an  empty  ear  of  corn.”  They  pretend  to  accomplish 
it  thus  : — 

A negro  is  walking  calmly  and  thoughtlessly  along : sud- 
denly he  hears  his  name,  looks  round,  and  sees  nothing ; 
slightly  disturbed,  he  pursues  his  walk,  but  hears  himself  called 
again  ; again  he  looks  round  and  still  sees  nothing.  He  is  now 
filled  with  the  paralysing  dread  that  his  soul  has  been  called  out 
of  him,  stolen  by  an  invisible  Muloshi ; he  is  no  longer  more 
than  a shadow  of  himself,  an  image  which  before  long  will  dis- 
solve, unless  he  betakes  himself  in  all  haste  to  a magician. 
Meantime  the  sorcerer  who  has  cast  the  spell  or  played  the 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  66 1 


trick  pretends  to  have  deposited  the  wraith  of  his  victim  in  a 
carefully  closed  jar  or  in  a hollow  figure.  Perhaps  at  the  same 
time  he  may  move  his  abode  to  another  village.  Here  he  may 
be  seen  and  consulted.  Clients  come  for  advice  and  squat 
down  before  his  doorway,  perhaps  to  consult  him  about  a sick 
or  deceased  relative.  The  seer  \Mpuka-manga  or  Mutempeshi , 
as  he  is  called]  openly  and  in  a loud  voice  interrogates  his  jar 
or  figure,  and  the  latter  is  heard  to  reply  in  a small  child-like 
voice — no  doubt  by  the  ventriloquism  of  the  Mpuka-manga. 
Meantime  the  deluded  victim  who  thinks  he  has  lost  his  soul 
has  applied  for  advice  to  a sorcerer,  possibly  to  the  very  Mpuka- 
manga  who  has  played  the  trick,  or  a confederate.  The  worker 
of  spells  thus  consulted  diagnoses  the  cause  of  the  patient’s  dis- 
tress and  pretends  to  discover  he  has  lost  his  identity  ; then 
manufactures  certain  charms  and  goes  in  pretended  search  of 
the  soul-robber.  Sometimes  he  accosts  a perfectly  innocent 
passer-by  and  blackmails  him,  thus  drawing  double  fees.  In 
the  long  run,  and  after  exacting  liberal  payments  from  the  be- 
witched client,  he  either  actually  restores  the  jar  or  figure 
thought  to  contain  the  stolen  soul,  or  if  that  cannot  be  done 
pretends  he  has  somehow  broken  the  spell  and  allowed  the 
man’s  identity  to  return  to  him.  There  are,  of  course,  cases  in 
which  it  suits  the  sorcerer’s  book  to  let  the  “ soulless”  man 
gradually  lose  his  sanity  under  this  powerful  delusion. 

There  is  a fund  of  common  sense  in  all  communities,  and 
witches,  witch-finders,  weavers  of  spells,  secret  societies,  can 
overdo  their  frauds,  exactions,  and  crimes,  individually  or  as  a 
body.  Then  there  is  a popular  uprising  and  a terrible  ven- 
geance exacted.  There  are  mesmerism,  chicanery,  poison, 
assassination,  and  ghoulish  cannibalism  on  the  side  of  the 
mystics  ; and  witchcraft  prosecutions,  poison  ordeals,  lynchings 
of  sorcerers  or  corpse-stealers  on  the  part  of  the  general  public. 
Episodes  of  witch-finding  are  dealt  with  in  chapter  xvi.  Here 
is  another  description  of  the  poison  ordeal  attendant  on  an 
accusation  of  sorcery  in  Northern  Lubaland,  collected  by  Tor- 
day  from  a missionary  traveller  in  that  region  : — 

“ The  official  medicine-man  ( Mwena  chihaha , poison  preparer)  comes 
forth,  clad  in  his  robe  of  state — that  is  to  say,  a tuft  of  blood-red  feathers 
on  his  head,  numerous  skins  around  his  loins,  his  body  painted  with 
white  ochre,  his  hands  holding  three  spears,  a whisk  made  of  an  ante- 
lope’s tail,  an  axe,  and  an  executioner’s  knife.  He  at  once  proceeds 
to  build  a little  hillock  of  earth,  covers  it  with  fresh  leaves,  and  the 
accused  sits  on  it  willingly  or  unwillingly  to  take  part  in  the  perform- 
ance of  the  poison  maker.  The  latter  crushes  and  pounds  the  reddish 


662  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


bark  of  the  poison  tree  and  throws  the  crushed  pieces  into  a jar  of 
boiling  water ; when  the  liquid  has  taken  a tint  satisfactory  to  the 
preparer,  it  is  decanted,  and  the  patient  has  to  swallow  a good  pint  and 
half  of  this  ill-omened  beverage  and  as  much  warm  water.  If  he  can 
throw  up  the  poison,  which  is  not  slow  in  its  action,  the  accusation  is 
false ; the  person  who  accused  him  can  but  fly  as  quickly  as  possible, 
for  the  relatives  of  the  prisoner  on  trial  have  the  right  to  cut  the  false 

accuser  in  pieces 
before  the  meet- 
ing separates ; 
while  the  accused 
will  receive  in 
payment  from 
the  family  of  his 
adversary  two 
slaves  or  the  equi- 
valent in  beads 
and  material.  But 
if  he  cannot  bring 
up  the  beverage 
quickly  enough, 
and  this  is  usually 
the  case,  he  sinks 
to  the  ground ; 
this  is  clear  proof 
that  he  is  guilty. 
At  once  the  rela- 
tives of  the  de- 
ceased (whom  his 
sorceries  are  sup- 
posed to  have 
slain)  hurl  them- 
selves upon  him, 
cut  off  his  head, 
then  his  arms 
and  legs,  and  the 
palpitating  mem- 
bers are  thrown 
into  a great 

356.  (1)  fetish  brush  or  whisk  made  of  a bush-  brazier;  t h i s 

buck’s  tail.  (2)  an  executioner’s  knife,  both  they  do  in  order 

from  northern  congo  utterly  to  destroy 

this  evil  - doer. 

Most  frequently  there  happens  to  be  present  some  cannibal  who 
buys  the  body  when  it  has  been  cut  in  pieces,  and  carries  it  away 
for  the  next  saturnalia,  at  which  he  and  his  companions  will  eat 
the  flesh,  burn  to  ashes  all  that  is  not  fit  for  food,  preserving  for 
themselves  only  certain  knuckle-bones  and  the  head,  to  make  of 
them  magic  talismans  and  amulets.” 


Of  course  the  recognized  professional  sorcerer  of  the  com- 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  663 

munity  holds  a much  securer  position  than  the  members  of  the 
“ uncovenanted  ” occult  service.1 

Baert,  a Belgian  explorer  and  official  who  with  J.  R. 
Werner  first  explored  the  Mongala  region  of  Northern  Congo- 
land  in  1887,  penned  the  following  description  of  a typical 
fetish-man  (official  sorcerer  and  doctor)  of  a Mongwandi  village 
on  the  Dua- Ebola  River  (the  Mongwandi  people  are  not  Bantu, 
but  related  to  the  Sango)  : — ■ 

“ Two  or  three  red  loin-cloths  woven  of  raphia-palm  fibre  encircle 
his  thighs  ; bells,  feathers,  and  iron  bracelets  ornament  his  ankles 
and  wrists  ; a collar  of  white  feathers  surrounds  his  neck  ; a score 
more  large  feathers  of  various  colours  are  bound  in  the  shape  of  a tail 
in  his  hair;  all  his  body  is  daubed  red,  his  face  painted  white;  his 
hands  shake  little  bells. 

“ Usually  the  fetish-man  is  called  upon  to  exercise  his  skill  for  the 
purpose  of  driving  away  the  evil  spirit  who,  according  to  the  belief 
of  these  simple  tribes,  has  taken  possession  of  the  body  of  one  of  their 
people  and  smitten  it  with  sickness.  To  put  the  evil  being  to  flight  the 
fetish-man  dances  for  two  days  before  the  patient’s  hut.  It  not  seldom 
happens  that  the  latter,  already  half  dead,  succumbs  to  the  exhaustion 
of  listening  for  forty-eight  hours  to  the  noise,  songs,  and  dances  which 
accompany  the  rites  of  exorcism.” 

Among  the  Bantu-speaking  tribes  of  the  lower  Mongala 
River  (below  the  Mongwandi)  this  is  how  the  Moganga  (medi- 
cine-man) proceeds  to  expel  the  intruding  spirit  or  demon  who 
has  caused  an  illness  : — 

“ His  loins  girt  with  two  or  three  pairs  of  red  drawers  woven  of 
bamboo  fibre,  bells,  feathers,  and  iron  bracelets  on  ankles  and  wrists,  a 

1 The  Duala  of  the  Cameroons  estuary  down  to  the  establishment  of  German 
rule  were  subject  to  the  same  dread  of  sorcery,  and  practised  the  same  disastrous 
ordeals  by  poison-water  as  prevail  almost  all  over  the  Congo  basin  amongst  the 
uncivilized  races.  The  adjoining  Isubu  people  of  Bimbia  developed  such  a frantic 
dread  of  sorcery  that  they  allowed  their  medicine-men  to  depopulate  the  country. 
The  inhabitants  of  the  Bimbia  peninsula  (north  of  the  Cameroons  delta)  were  reduced 
by  witchcraft  prosecutions  and  judicial  murders  from  some  10,000  in  number  in  1845 
to  about  2,000  in  1885.  The  witch-finding  was  the  work  of  the  ngambi  or  medicine- 
man (equivalent  to  the  Congo  nga?iga).  He  usually  commenced  his  work  by  consult- 
ing the  spirits,  supposed  to  inhabit  a bowl  of  water.  Gazing  into  the  bowl,  he  pre- 
tended to  see  fish  that  would  tell  him  whether  the  sick  person  would  live  or  die  ; or 
he  would  learn  from  them  at  once  the  name  of  the  man  or  woman  whose  sorcery  was 
the  cause  of  the  sickness.  Very  often  the  case  was  met  by  indicating  as  a witch  the 
last  person  who  had  entertained  or  given  food  to  the  sick  one.  Once  the  victim  was 
selected,  he  dared  not  move  away  from  the  town,  as  flight  would  be  taken  as  certain 
evidence  of  guilt,  and  unless  he  was  prepared  to  support  life  in  the  bush  he  would  be 
everywhere  an  outlaw.  The  poison  was  some  decoction  of  Strychnos  nuts  or  Erythro- 
phlcemn  bark. 

In  some  cases  the  ngambi  proceeded  by  directer  methods.  All  the  people  of  the 
village  where  a person  lay  sick  were  assembled  in  conclave  and  made  to  sit  in  a 
circle.  The  ngambi  would  then  dance  round  the  circle,  working  himself  up  to  a con- 
dition of  frenzy,  and  finally  point  out  the  man  or  woman  who  had  caused  the  sickness 
by  their  witchcraft.  Without  more  ado  the  victim  would  then  be  hurried  down  to  the 
waterside,  beaten  to  death  with  sticks,  and  cast  into  the  river. 


664  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


collar  of  white  feathers  round  his  neck,  a score  more  feathers  of  various 
colours  stitched  in  the  form  of  a fan  in  his  hair,  his  whole  body  coated 
with  red,  his  face  painted  white,  and  shaking  bells  in  his  hands,  the 
fetish-man  dances  usually  for  two  days  before  the  patient’s  hut.  All 
the  inhabitants  of  the  place  surround  the  Moganga,  and  an  orchestra 
composed  of  two  great  wooden  gongs,  a war  drum,  and  an  instru- 
ment resembling  the  xylophone,  begins  a monotonous  air ; the  people 

answer  in  chorus 
to  the  songs  of 
which  the  fetish- 
man  gives  the 
first  strophes. 

“Such  a gather- 
ing lasts  about 
three  hours,  the 
time  required  to 
exhaust  the  dan- 
cer. The  last 
named  is  seen 
leaping,  or  turn- 
ing on  his  big 
toes  for  one  or 
two  minutes; 
sometimes  he 
mimics  warfare, 
the  departure  of 
the  soldiers,  the 
battle ; he  imi- 
tates the  attack 
and  the  defence, 
and  finally  the 
defeat  of  the 
enemy ; immedi- 
ately after,  he  be- 
gins a song  of 
victory.  . . .” 


357.  A FETISH  MASK  FROM  THE  BAYAKA  COUNTRY,  KWANGO 
RIVER,  EMPLOYED  IN  MYSTIC  DANCES 

He  is  similar  to  the  Roman  augur,  and  like  him  (in  Northern 
Congoland)  consults  the  entrails  of  fowls  or  deduces  omens 
from  the  flight  of  birds. 

The  Arabs  on  the  extreme  north  or  in  Eastern  Congoland 
(Tanganyika)  have  also  introduced  the  practice  of  divination  by 
sand.  A frequent  method  of  seeking  to  divine  the  future  is  by 
giving  some  poisonous  drug  to  a fowl  and  arguing  by  results  : — 


The  magi- 
cian or  his  pu- 
pils also  prac- 
tise divination. 


“ The  Azande,  when  they  desire  to  know  what  fate  a projected  war 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  665 

may  have  in  store  for  them,  administer  to  a hen  an  oily  liquid  extracted 
from  a red  wood  called  benge : if  she  dies,  a disaster  is  to  be  expected; 
if  she  survives,  victory  is  assured.  The  ceremony  of  benge  is  of  common 
practice. 

“ There  is  yet  another  mode  of  proceeding  in  order  to  unravel  the 
future : a cock  is  obtained  and  carried  to  the  river,  and  its  head  is  held 
under  water  for  a considerable  time  and  at  frequent  intervals.  The 
cock  is  then  left  to  itself ; if  it  recovers,  it  is  a happy  omen  ; if  it  dies, 
defeat  is  certain.” 

Closely  connected  with  religion  and  sorcery  are  the  Initi- 
ation ceremonies  of  boys  and  girls  at  the  age  of  puberty,  the 
secret  societies  of  men  (and  less  commonly  of  women),  the 
“mysteries,”  devil  dances,  and  other  means  adopted  for  creating 
or  maintaining  a discipline  of  terror  that  might  hold  children, 
women,  and  the  bas  peuple  in  subjection  to  the  oligarchy  of 
male  elders. 

Grenfell,  at  Bolobo,  ten  years  ago  stumbled  on  an  interest- 
ing piece  of  evidence  : — 

“ One  of  our  boys  twirling  a serrated  stick  and  producing  a roar 
was  stopped  by  one  of  the  men  in  his  village.  ‘ What,’  said  he,  ‘ you 
will  let  the  women  into  the  secret!  If  they  understand,  we  shall  no 
longer  be  able  to  make  them  afraid.’  ” 

This  evidently  points  to  the  use  of  the  bull-roarers  in  parts 
of  the  Congo,  another  of  the  many  ethnographical  features 
shared  in  common  between  the  negroes  and  the  black  Austra- 
lians. 

It  is  well  known  to  all  students  of  Africa  that  in  the  Guinea 
lands  of  West  Africa  outside  the  Muhammadan  countries  of 
Nigeria  (and  even  inside  these  regions  where  Muhammadanism 
is  of  recent  establishment),  in  parts  of  the  Cameroons  and  of  the 
Gaboon,  and  on  the  Lower  Cono-o;  again,  in  Bantu  South  Africa 
amongst  the  Bechuana  and  Zulu  Kafirs  and  other  races  within 
the  Zambezi  watershed  ; amongst  the  Yao  and  pagan  Makua 
of  Eastern  Nyasaland;  in  some  of  the  Bantu  tribes  of  German 
East  Africa  and  others  of  the  western  coast-lands  of  the 
Victoria  Nyanza;  also  in  some  tribes  of  Nilotic  negroes  like 
the  Masai,  there  are,  or  were,  “ bttsh  schools ,”  ceremonies  of 
initiation  into  sexual,  tribal,  and  social  mysteries  for  both  boys 
and  girls  approaching  the  age  of  puberty.  At  this  stage  between 
childhood  and  adolescence  the  boy  or  girl  was  taken  away  from 
village  life  and  sent  to  join  companions  of  the  same  age  and  sex 
at  encampments  or  temporary  villages  erected  in  the  forest  or 
scrub.  This  period  of  seclusion  might  last  for  two  or  three 


666  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


months  or  for  only  a few  days.  It  was  usually  associated 
with  a complete  change  of  name,  and  sometimes  accompanied 
by  circumcision  in  the  males  or  clitoridectomy  in  the  females,1 
and  usually  with  instructions  in  sexual  matters.  The  girls  would 

be  drilled  in  the  domestic 
arts,  and  the  boys  inducted 
into  the  preliminary  stages 
of  secret  societies,  or  into  a 
kind  of  male  freemasonry, 
which,  amongst  other  pur- 
poses, was  to  keep  the  wo- 
men in  order  and  under  con- 
trol by  frightening  them  with 
unexplained  terrors,  such  as 
the  use  of  the  bull-roarer 
with  its  booming  noise,2  the 
imitation  of  hobgoblins, 
devils,  jack -in -the -greens, 
anthropoid  apes.  Now  it  is 
remarkable  that  north-east 
of  the  Cataract  region  and 
over  the  central  basin  of  the 
Congo  these  customs  of 
initiating  young  people  have 
not  as  yet  been  noted,  and 
are  either  non-existent  or  in 
abeyance.  [The  Ababua  of 
the  Wele-Bomokandi  have 
no  initiation  ceremonies.] 
Even  on  the  Lower  Congo, 
according  to  Bentley,  some 
of  these  initiation  ceremonies 
are  of  relatively  recent  in- 
troduction from  the  coast. 
But  Grenfell  apparently  met 
0 with  the  custom  at  Yalemba, 

358.  A BAYAKA  FRICTION-DRUM  FROM  THE  ^ 

lower  kwango  (torday  collection)  on  the  north-eastern  Congo, 

and  “bush  schools”  cer- 
tainly exist  in  the  south-central  basin  of  the  Congo. 

There  are,  for  instance,  initiation  ceremonies  among  the 
northern  Baluba,  and  possibly  the  Bakuba.  In  the  region 


1 In  Congoland  circumcision  is  very  rarely  connected  with  initiation  ceremonies, 
and  is  usually  performed  on  the  infant  or  young  child. 

2 The  friction-drum  in  South-West  Congoland  has  replaced  the  bull-roarer  : see 
P-  394- 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  667 

between  the  Lulua  and  the  Kasai,  when  the  boys  reach  puberty 
(about  fifteen  years  old)  the  medicine-man  of  the  village  retires 
with  them  into  a dense  thicket,  away  from  all  scrutiny.  Here 
the  boys  have  to  lay  aside  all  clothing,  retaining  only  a waist- 
band of  leaves  and  strings.  Their  bodies  are  then  smeared 
with  palm  oil  and  decorated  in  fantastic  patterns  with  bands 
formed  from  red  clay,  white  clay,  redwood  dust,  and  a resinous 
vegetable  gum.  They  have  to  pass  through  severe  physical 
tests,  and  are  instructed  in  the  science  of  warfare  and  the  arts  of 
peace.  Their  time  of  seclusion  is  said  to  last  only  ten  days, 
during  which  an  unearthly  noise  is  kept  up  in  the  secluded  pre- 
cincts, and  any  one  breaking  in  on  the  ceremonies  would  be 
very  severely  maltreated. 

In  the  Kongo  kingdom  to  the  south  of  the  Cataract  region, 
and  perhaps  also  under  different  names  in  Kakongo,  nortn  of 
the  Congo  estuary,  there  are  two  initiation  societies,  Ndembo  or 
Nkita  (which  applies  to  both  sexes)  and  Nkimba.  The  Ndembo 
society  or  guild,  according  to  Bentley,  spreads  beyond  the 
Bakongo  region  into  the  interior  of  the  Congo  basin.  A young 
person  of  either  sex  who  is  to  be  initiated  into  the  Ndembo 
guild  applies  first  of  all  to  the  Nganga  (medicine-man  or  wizard) 
of  the  community.  The  would-be  initiate  at  a sign  from  the 
medicine-man  feigns  death  or  a swoon  in  some  public  place. 
A funeral  cloth  is  laid  over  the  novice,  who  is  borne  away  to 
a stockaded  settlement  in  the  bush  called  vela.  It  is  usually 
pretended  then  that  the  young  person  is  dead.  When  one 
case  of  this  fictitious  demise  occurs  it  is  usually  followed  by 
a number  of  others,  till  it  may  develop  into  a regular  wave  of 
hysteria,  so  that  from  twenty  to  fifty  persons,  all  of  whom  have 
feigned  death  and  have  been  conveyed  to  the  vela , may  be 
ready  at  one  time  for  initiation.  It  is  then  given  out  that  their 
bodies  are  decomposing  in  the  vela  until  they  are  reduced  to 
a single  bone,  which  is  kept  by  the  medicine-man.  After  a 
period  which  may  vary  from  three  months  to  three  years,  the 
medicine-man  pretends  to  bring  about  their  resurrection  by 
building  up  their  bodies  anew  on  the  single  bone  that  he  has 
kept.  On  the  date  that  he  determines  the  pretended  resurrec- 
tion is  completed,  and  the  now  fully  initiated  Ndembo  folk 
return  to  their  native  town  dressed  in  new  cloths  and  in  the  best 
of  spirits. 

In  their  homes  they  pretend  to  have  come  from  the  spirit 
world,  and  invariably  assume  new  names,  especially  of  a type 
associated  with  these  Ndembo  mysteries.1  “They  pretend  to 

1 Vide  Bentley’s  Dictionary  for  list  of  names. 


668  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

be  quite  strange  to  this  world,  do  not  know  their  parents  or 
relatives,  or  how  to  eat.”  Some  one  must  masticate  their  food 
for  them.  They  want  everything  they  see,  and  may  wreak 
vengeance  on  those  who  refuse  them  the  desired  article,  even 
killing  them  if  they  like,  without  fear  of  consequences.  The 
town  folk  look  upon  them  as  irresponsible  lunatics,  and  this 
immunity  from  justice  continues  for  some  weeks  after  their  re- 
appearance. If  any  one  asks  curious  questions  as  to  the  land 
from  whence  they  have  come,  they  stick  a piece  of  grass 


359.  NKIMBA  BOYS,  NORTH  BANK  OF  THE  LOWER  CONGO  (BASUNDI  PEOPLE) 

behind  their  ears  and  pretend  to  be  perfectly  unconscious  of 
being  addressed.  Whilst  they  are  living  under  the  charge 
of  the  medicine-man  in  the  vela  they  are  taught  a mystic 
language,  which  describes  common  articles  by  fancy  names. 
According  to  Bentley,  however,  this  vela  dialect  is  an  imperfect 
gibberish  which  is  soon  forgotten.  The  chief  feature  of  this 
life  within  the  secluded  settlement,  however,  is  that  of  gross 
sexual  immorality  between  the  young  men  and  women  who  are 
living  together.  The  extremes  to  which  this  licentiousness  was 
carried  caused  the  Ndembo  society  to  be  abolished  in  many 
districts,  especially  those  under  the  immediate  control  of  the 
King  of  Kongo.  This  Ndembo  society  recalls  in  this  and  other 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  669 

features  similar  “ bush  ” institutions  in  the  Cross  River  countries, 
the  Niger  Delta,  and  far  away  in  East  Africa  amongst  the  Masai. 

The  Nkimba  brotherhood  (according  to  Bentley)  is  a 
relatively  recent  introduction  from  the  coast.  An  initiatory  fee 
is  paid,  which  formerly  consisted  of  two  large  pieces  of  cloth 
and  two  fowls,  and  the  novice  then  repairs  to  an  enclosure  out- 
side the  town,  where  he  allows  himself  to  be  drugged.  Re- 
covering from  insensibility,  he  finds  himself  surrounded  by  his 
future  comrades  of  the  Nkimba  who  are  undergoing  their 
initiation  in  this  enclosure.  Their  bodies  are  whitened  with 
kaolin  or  pipeclay,  and  they  wear  a kind  of  kilt  or  petticoat  of 
palm  fronds.  These  long,  streaming  filaments  are  fastened 
ordinarily  to  a wooden  belt,  which  is  sometimes  rudely  decorated 
with  a pattern,  and  which  encompasses  the  waist  somewhat 
loosely,  resting  on  the  hips.  Those  who  have  been  initiated 
speak  a mysterious  language,  which  is  made  either  by  introvert- 
ing the  syllables  of  words,  or  by  the  spontaneous  creation  of 
new  sound-symbols.  The  language  is  governed  by  prefixes 
and  the  usual  concords  ; but  though  it  observes  the  same  laws 
of  phonology  as  the  ordinary  Kishikongo,  it  is  an  entirely 
different  speech.1 

The  Nkimba  confraternity  does  not  confine  its  life  to  the 
space  within  the  sacred  enclosure.  The  young  men  who  are 
passing  from  six  months  to  two  years  in  this  association  wander 
about  the  bush  and  open  country  in  the  daytime,  searching  for 
edible  roots,  fruit,  nuts,  or  any  rats  or  birds  that  they  can 
capture.  They  also  seize  unhesitatingly  food-supplies,  such  as 
fowls,  goats,  plantains,  manioc,  if  in  want  of  supplies  ; though 
as  a rule  they  avoid  in  the  daytime  the  haunts  of  other  people. 
Any  one  who  meets  the  Nkimba  in  the  open  country  or  on  the 
road  takes  to  flight,  because  it  is  their  privilege  with  their  long 
staves  to  beat  unmercifully  any  one  they  may  encounter,  the 
beaten  person  not  being  allowed  by  native  law  to  make  reprisals. 
At  night  they  rush  about  villages  screaming,  and  assaulting  any 
unwary  person  who  may  leave  his  house.  Whenever  met  by 
day  or  night  they  utter  a peculiar  trill — drrrr.2 * * 

1 The  deliberate  invention  of  a new  language  for  the  purposes  of  a secret  society 
is  no  uncommon  feature  in  Bantu  Africa,  just  as  in  some  tribes  of  the  south  the  women 
speak  a dialect  almost  peculiar  to  their  sex.  It  is  thus,  no  doubt,  that  new  and  puzzling 
languages  or  dialects  suddenly  spring  into  existence. 

2 “‘The  natives  run  away  from  the  Nkimba,  but  these  last  run  away  from  the 
white  man  ? Why  ?’  ‘ Because  the  white  man  will  not  run  from  us,  and  if  we  touched 

any  one  he  would  die  ; so  we  run  away  to  avoid  touching  you.'  ‘ Why  don’t  you  want 
to  touch  us  ? 5 ‘ Because  we  do  not  want  you  to  die,  as  there  would  then  be  a palaver.5 

“No  one  undergoing  the  Nkimba  ceremonies  can  be  indicted  as  a witch.  They 

cannot  be  drowned,  nor  can  crocodiles  eat  them.55  ^Grenfell’s  diary.) 


670  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

In  addition  to  the  white  chalky  covering  or  paste  with  which 
their  sooty  skins  are  covered,  the  Nkimba  youths  decorate  their 
heads  whenever  they  can  afford  it  with  a wicker  crown  or  cage, 
to  which  little  strips  of  scarlet  cloth,  or  the  scarlet  tail-feathers 
of  the  Grey  Parrot,  or  the  crimson  pinions  of  the  Turaco  are 
fixed.  Apparently,  various  grades  of  initiation  into  the  Free- 
masonry are  marked  by  tufts  of  grass  hanging  from  the 
shoulders  or  the  neck.  A full  brother  who  has  passed  all  the 
grades  is  called  mbwamvu  anjata  (according  to  Bentley),  and 
wherever  he  goes,  all  who  belong  to  the  Nkimba  society  hail 
him  as  a relative,  help  him  in  his  business,  afford  hospitality,  and 
converse  with  him  when  doing  so  in  the  mystic  language  of  the 
craft. 

As  in  most  Freemasonry  (no  doubt),  a good  many  of  the 
maxims  taught  in  the  Nkimba  school  are  sheer  unpractical  non- 
sense. The  rite  is  now  rapidly  decreasing  in  importance,  owing 
partly  to  the  spread  of  Christianity,  and  partly  to  the  increase 
of  trade  and  the  large  amount  of  employment  given  to  Congo 
youths  on  railways,  public  works,  etc.,  an  employment  which 
leaves  them  no  time  for  useless  fooleries. 

The  region  west  of  Tanganyika  and  east  of  the  Kasai 
“pullulates”  with  secret  societies,  guilds,  brotherhoods,  sister- 
hoods, and  mysterious  sects.  That  of  the  Bakansanzi  for  the 
enjoyment  of  ghoulish  cannibalism  has  already  been  referred  to. 
In  addition  to  this  the  Belgian  missionaries  aver  that  there  is 
a sect  called  Butwci  in  the  country  east  of  the  Lualaba  and 
Lukundu  in  Lubaland  which  has  several  grades  of  initiation, 
and  which  has  for  its  main  object  the  practice  of  very  gross 
immorality. 

Some  of  the  societies  and  guilds  undoubtedly  represent  the 
remains  of  privileged  classes,  aristocracies,  gifted  strangers 
of  superior  culture  who  introduced  new  arts  and  industries  to 
the  pristine  negro. 

Torday  describes  an  order  of  this  kind  among  the  prog- 
nathous Bambala  (and  perhaps  Bayaka  also).  This  is  the 
Muri  society . The  word  Muri  is  a title  of  honour  and  mys- 
tery, and  appears  to  exist  among  several  of  the  tribes  in  that 
rather  peculiar  region  of  the  Congo  basin  bounded  by  the 
Kwango  on  the  west,  the  Kwilu  and  Kasai  on  the  north  and 
east.  Muri  Kongo  has  been  already  mentioned  as  the  honorific 
title  of  the  principal  chief  of  the  Bayaka  {Kongo  of  course 
would  mean  “the  great  hunter”).  The  men  called  Muri 
amongst  the  Bambala  are  especially  distinguished  by  the  privi- 
lege of  wearing  a finely  wrought  iron  bracelet  on  the  arm, 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  671 

which  is  called  muena.  They  must  also  wear  perpetually  a 
head-covering  of  cloth  which  may  not  be  removed  by  any  one, 
even  by  accident,  without  incurring  the  death  penalty.  The 
muena  bracelet  is  unpurchasable,  and  passes  at  the  death  of 
the  man  who  has  worn  it  to  his  sister’s  son  after  a very  elabo- 
rate ceremony,  at  the  end  of  which  the  heir  to  the  muena  must 
steal  his  uncle’s  skull  at  night.  If  a Muri  is  slain  in  battle  and 
the  enemy  becomes  possessed  of  the  corpse  (which  as  a matter 
of  custom  they  will  eat),  they  first  of  all  detach  the  arm  which 
wears  the  iron  bracelet  and  return  this  trophy  to  the  dead  man’s 
tribe  to  be  handed  on  to  the  rightful  heir.  It  is  feared  if  this 
precaution  is  not  taken  that  whoever  retains  the  iron  bracelet 
will  certainly  die.  Torday  was  told  that  the  institution  of  the 
Muri  had  always  existed,  but  was  apparently  dying  out,  as  no 
new  iron  bracelets  are  made  nowadays. 

These  privileged  persons  are  saddled  with  the  restriction  of 
not  being  allowed  to  eat  human  flesh  or  that  of  fowls.  It  is 
possible  that  the  institution  is  a relic  of  the  days  when  smelting 
and  forging  of  iron  was  a new  wonder  brought  into  the  land  by 
some  wandering  gypsy  blacksmith  of  superior  race  (Baluba, 
Bakuba),  and  that  a superstitious  reverence  was  attached  to 
them  and  their  descendants. 

Of  Birth  customs  there  are  not  many  notes  in  the  diaries 
or  collections  of  missionaries  which  form  the  staple  of  this 
book.  From  other  sources  of  information  it  is  obvious  that  the 
practice  of  provoking  abortion  is  a very  common  one  through- 
out Congoland  (though  ignored,  for  example,  by  the  Ba-yaka), 
but  most  of  all  in  the  north  and  centre.  This  is  brought  about 
at  the  third  or  at  the  fifth  month  by  drinking  very  hot  wTater,  by 
the  use  of  mechanical  means  of  injuring  the  foetus,  or  by 
swallowing  certain  drugs  known  to  the  medicine-men  and  to  the 
old  women.  Polygamy  is  the  indirect  cause  of  this  unnatural 
act.  Native  custom  ordains  that  a husband  shall  not  only  cease 
cohabitation  after  pregnancy  is  well  declared,  but  that  he  shall 
in  any  case  absent  himself  from  his  wife  during  the  whole 
period  of  lactation.  As  he  is  not  restricted  by  monogamous 
principles  these  rules  imply  no  hardship  for  him.  But  they 
prove  intolerable  for  some  wives,  who  in  consequence  either 
seek  to  rid  themselves  of  motherhood  in  order  to  remain  with 
their  husbands,  or  wean  their  children  rapidly  so  as  to  kill  them. 

As  a rule  the  mother  remains  secluded  in  her  hut  for  about 
ten  days  after  the  child  is  born  (until  the  umbilical  cord  has 
dried  up  and  fallen  off),  and  during  this  period  the  husband 


672  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

may  not  see  her  ; though  he  may — and  often  does  in  most 
tribes  superior  to  the  Pygmy — offer  sacrifices  to  the  gods  for  her 
health  and  that  of  the  child.  Lord  Mountmorres  states,  how- 
ever, that  among  the  Sango  people  of  the  upper  Mubangi  the 
husband  alone  attends  to  his  wife  during  confinement  in  a 
secluded  retreat. 

At  Bopoto  and  among  the  Ngombe  of  the  northern  Congo 
the  head  of  the  infant  child  is  tightly  bound  soon  after  birth 
between  fiat  pieces  of  bark  in  order  to  compress  and  lengthen 
the  skull. 

Great  infant  mortality  and  few  children  in  each  polygamous 
household  (due  to  the  provocation  of  miscarriages)  have 
certainly  tended  to  check  the  natural  increase  of  tribes  like  the 
Babangi  (Bayanzi),  Bangala,  and  the  riverain  people  of  the 
Mubangi.  But  it  is  probable  that  in  the  main  natural  instincts 
prevail,  and  that  travellers  exaggerate  occasional  instances  of 
vice  into  a far-reaching  custom.  That  a large  percentage  of 
the  children  die — once  they  are  born — is  evident  from  the 
Baptist  Mission  records,  extending  over  more  than  twenty 
years.  This  is  chiefly  due  to  unsuitable,  indigestible,  or 
insufficient  food. 

Grenfell  has  numerous  notes  on  the  preposterous  attempts 
to  feed  infants  of  a few  weeks  old  with  manioc-paste  (tapioca). 

A curious  custom  described  by  Bentley  under  the  heading  of 
Mpangu  (in  his  Kongo  Dictionary ) exists  not  only  among  the 
western  Kongo  people,  but  elsewhere  in  Central  and  Southern 
Congoland. 

“ When  a woman  is  approaching  confinement,  a doctor  is  called,  who 
orders  a feast.  A variety  of  vegetables  are  prepared,  and  certain  kinds 
of  meat  are  also  cooked.  The  feast  is  eaten  only  by  people  of  the  same 
clan  ( ekanda ) as  the  woman.  The  doctor  then  instructs  the  mother  that 
the  child  is  on  no  account  to  eat  any  of  the  meats  or  fish  which  were 
ordered  by  him  for  the  feast.  These  meats  (not  the  vegetables)  are 
henceforth  to  the  child  lekwa yanipangu  = tabued  things.  The  restriction 
is  called  mpangu  ; to  impose  such  restriction,  shia  e mpangu  ; the  doctor 
is  said  to  place  the  woman  under  a spell  or  charm,  kotesa  onkento.  Some- 
times the  doctor  will  limit  these  restrictions  ; thus,  he  may  say  the  child 
shall  not  eat  these  things  until  it  has  become  the  parent  of  a boy  and  a 
girl,  after  which  anything  may  be  eaten.  These  restrictions  are  the  mere 
whims  of  the  doctor,  although  the  most  frightful  consequences  are  sup- 
posed to  follow  any  transgression.  For  instance,  the  mpangu  of  one  lad 
are  as  follows : not  to  eat  ( nguvu ) hippopotamus  flesh  or  ( kwa  kia 
nguvu)  yam,  the  penalty  being  leprosy ; not  to  eat  crayfish,  the  penalty 
being  a skin  disease  on  the  hand  ; nor  raw  palm  nuts,  the  penalty,  an 
outbreak  of  scald  head  ; nor  a small  spotted  fish,  called  nlumbu , penalty, 
ophthalmia  and  loss  of  eyelashes  ; nor  the  great  ezunda  frog,  penalty, 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  673 

his  eyes  will  become  big  in  the  same  manner  as  the  frog’s.  The  mpangu 
restrictions  are  only  those  imposed  upon  an  unborn  child.” 

Grenfell  has  revealed  the  existence  of  a similar  tabu  on  the 
Upper  Congo  (Babangi),  and  it  seems  to  exist  among  the 
Bangala.  It  may  be  anciently  connected  with  totemism. 
Bentley  does  not  seem  to  hold  that  opinion. 

A Congo  child  in  all  the  tribes  above  the  Pygmy  stage  of 
culture1  is  usually  provided  with  a godfather  soon  after  birth. 
This  is  usually  the  mother’s  brother.  In  fact  the  maternal 


360.  BOYS  OF  BOPOTO,  UPPER  CONGO,  BATHING  AND  PLAYING  ON  BEACH 


uncle  plays  almost  a more  important  part  in  the  upbringing  of 
the  child  than  the  actual  father  thereof,  and  inheritance  is 
usually  from  uncle  to  nephew. 

In  a considerable  part  of  South  Congoland  the  child  when 
able  to  fend  for  itself  is  sent  to  its  mother’s  people.'2 

Children  are  usually  treated  with  great  kindness  and  indul- 
gence ; at  worst  with  good-humoured  indifference.  But  when 

1 Among  the  Pygmies  abortion  appears  to  be  unknown.  They  have  large  families 
and  are  very  fond  of  their  children. 

2 Among  the  Bakwese  of  the  upper  Kwilu  and  the  Ba-achinji  and  hnbangala  of 
the  middle  Kwango,  children  are  usually  supposed  to  telong  to  the  mother’s  brother. 

II. N 


674  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

a state  of  war  has  arisen  between  tribe  and  tribe  and  evil 
passions  are  let  loose,  the  children  of  the  foe  may  be  destroyed 
or  mutilated  pitilessly.  This  trait  was  horribly  evident  when 
the  native  soldiers  or  police  appointed  to  control  the  rubber 
forests  chose  to  punish  the  recalcitrant  natives  who  failed  to 
bring  in  the  supplies  demanded. 

The  following  notes  deal  with  marriage  customs  and  the 
position  of  women. 

Amono-  the  Pvp'mies  marriage  is  little  else  than  the  tender- 
ing of  a gift  of  arrow  heads  or  knives  or  other  objects  of  local 
value  to  the  father  of  the  girl,  who  is  thereby  acquired  by  the 
purchaser ; though  no  doubt  inclination  counts  for  much  in  the 
bargain  and  fidelity  thereto.  Adultery  does  not  seem  to  be 
greatly  resented  among  the  Pygmies,  indeed,  according  to 
evidence  I have  myself  collected,  they  seem  to  approach  very 
near  to  promiscuity  and  even’ incest  in  their  marital  relations, 
within  each  separate  band  or  community. 

Among  the  forest  tribes  in  the  north-eastern  part  of  the 
Mongala  basin  (Basutanda,  for  example)  the  custom  of  marriage 
by  capture  exists.  A man  carries  off  a wife  by  force,  betakes 
himself  with  her  to  the  forest,  lives  there  by  hunting,  and  only 
returns  to  the  village  when  the  wife  has  a child  and  it  is  weaned. 
Returned  home,  he  quits  his  temporary  wife,  and  gives  her  half 
the  proceeds  of  their  hunting  in  exchange  for  the  child. 

The  chiefs  of  a neighbouring  tribe  in  the  valley  of  the 
middle  Mubangi  (. Mosombanza ) have  marital  rights  over  the 
sisters  of  their  wives,  the  wives  of  their  brothers,  and  the  wives 
of  their  wives’  brothers. 

Among  the  Nsakara 1 (north  of  the  Mubangi)  the  marriage 
tie  is  very  loose.  Married  women  are  most  unchaste  and  abor- 
tion is  freely  practised.  Yet  chastity  is  expected  of  the  widows, 
daughters,  or  sisters  of  dead  chiefs  (chiefs  of  great  importance). 
These  have  to  spend  their  lives  maintaining  a perpetual  fire  on 
the  dwelling-tomb  of  the  deceased  potentate.2 

No  one  may  see  the  favourite  wives  of  an  Nsakara  chief 
without  incurring  the  penalty  of  death.  The  people  are  warned 
of  the  presence  of  these  wives  by  short  squeaks  or  cries  which 
they  utter  as  they  walk.  Every  one  at  once  withdraws  and 
only  reappears  when  the  favourite  wives  are  out  of  view. 

The  Momvu , a Forest  negro  tribe  more  or  less  subject  to 
the  Manbettu,  accord  women  a very  honourable  position,  re- 

1 The  Nsakara  Sultan,  Bangasu  of  Mbomu,  has  or  had  fifteen  hundred  wives. 

2 A somewhat  similar  custom  prevailed  formerly  in  Uganda. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  675 

garding  them  as  at  least  the  equals  of  the  men.  Quite  excep- 
tionally in  this  tribe,  as  in  the  Banza  far  away  to  the  west, 
agriculture  is  mans  work,  the  woman  stays  at  home.  As  a 
rule  in  Congoland  (and  in  much  else  of  negro  Africa)  tilling 
and  tending  the  fields,  making  pottery,  and  extracting  salt 
from  potash  are  considered  specially  “woman’s  work.”  Sewing, 
on  the  other  hand,  is  a man’s  occupation. 

Though  the  Manbettu  women  work  in  the  fields,  they  never- 
theless (as  with  the  Momvu)  are  much  respected. 

The  Manbettu  wife  is  not  isolated  by  her  husband,  as  is  the 


361.  “woman’s  work”:  a woman  OF  THE  NORTHERN  CONGO, 

NEAR  BOPOTO,  MAKING  POTS 

case  among  the  neighbouring  Azande  ; she  even  plays  a con- 
siderable part  in  the  great  gatherings  which  are  held  to  discuss 
important  questions  which  concern  the  fate  of  the  nation,  to 
decide  peace  or  war. 

It  is  not  long  since  a wife  of  the  late  sultan  Nyangara, 
named  Nenzima,  directed  with  great  wisdom  the  policy  of  the 
Manbettu  people.  All  the  great  chiefs  who  ruled  in  that 
country  came  to  her  to  ask  advice  in  difficult  circumstances. 

Among  the  Abarambo  (a  clan  of  the  Ababua  Bantu  and  a 
subject  people  of  the  Nyamnyam)  the  wife  is  usually  purchased 
now  by  a percussion  gun  ; but  formerly  the  purchase  price  was 


676  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

regulated  in  mapuka , little  bars  of  iron.  In  the  different  groups 
of  the  Ababna , Babati , and  Baieu  (Bantu-speaking)  tribes 
along  the  upper  Wele  and  Bomokandi  and  upper  Rubi  rivers 
marriage  by  capture  is  of  common  occurrence,  but  frequently 
results  in  war  between  the  two  villages  ; properly  the  husband 
ought  to  buy  his  wife,  her  consent  not  being  absolutely  neces- 
sary. Polygyny  is  general,  and  girls  are  often  sold  at  a very 
tender  age.  Men  usually  take  their  wives  from  other  villages 
than  their  own,  and  the  marriage  is  celebrated  by  dancing, 
eating,  and  drinking.  Conjugal  fidelity  is  expected  of  women, 
but  not  of  men.  In  cases  of  adultery  the  injured  husband  may 
in  theory  kill  both  the  culprits,  but  as  a rule  the  erring  wife  is 
only  beaten,  and  the  man  escapes  with  a heavy  fine.  Divorce 
exists.  If  the  husband  is  tired  of  his  wife  he  simply  orders  her 
to  return  to  her  parents.  In  this  case  the  price  paid  for  her,  or 
a part  of  it,  must  be  restored,  but  frequently  one  of  her  sisters 
is  given  in  compensation.  A woman  who  has  born  two  or 
more  children  to  her  husband  cannot  be  divorced.1 

The  invading  Nycimnyam  (Azande,  Makarka)  hold  their 
women  in  great  respect  and  affection  and  exhibit  a very  jealous 
disposition.  They  dislike  their  wives  being  seen  by  strangers. 

The  crime  of  adultery  meets  with  a terrible  punishment ; 
the  woman  rarely  escapes  her  husband’s  anger ; as  for  her 
accomplice,  they  cut  off  his  ears  and  hands,  then  the  executioners 
do  their  best  to  save  his  life  that  he  may  serve  as  an  example. 

Though  polygamy  exists,  they  are  apt  to  concentrate  their 
affections  on  one  wife,  the  head  woman  of  the  household. 
It  is  she  who  manages  the  whole  of  the  husband’s  establish- 
ment,  directs  his  plantations — seed-sowing  and  harvesting. 
She  is  not  only  entitled  to  give  her  opinion,  but  is  expected 
to  do  so,  and  usually  sways  her  husband  in  everything.  This 
close  attachment  between  man  and  wife  arises  partly  from  a 
curious  belief  that  constant  cohabitation  is  necessary  to  the 
growth  of  the  child  during  pregnancy. 

The  Mongwandi  of  the  upper  Mongala  region  and  perhaps 
the  closely  allied  Sango  of  the  Mubangi  also  tend  towards 
monogamy  in  their  domestic  arrangements.  This  arises  partly 
from  the  high  value — morally  and  commercially — placed  on 
women.  Great  chiefs  alone  possess  several  wives.  A Mong- 
wandi couple  inhabit  the  one  house — a largish  hut  in  the 
shape  of  a truncated  cone. 

The  Mongwandi  youth  usually  makes  these  preparations  for 

1 For  details  as  to  sexual  morality  vide  Professor  Halkin’s  Quelques  Peuplades 
de  P Uele.  Liege. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  677 

eventual  marriage.  He  selects  by  preference  a girl  child  of 
six  or  seven  years,  because  she  can  be  bought  cheaper  at  that 
age.  Her  price — some  five  years  before  the  nubile  age — is 
usually  ten  milch  goats,  ten  spears,  ten  knives,  and  ten  dogs. 

On  each  visit  of  the  betrothed  husband  to  his  parents-in-law 
he  is  expected  to  bring  a spear  or  a knife  ; it  is  a species  of 
rent.  At  the  time  when  his  betrothed  has  attained  the  required 
age  and  development,  the  intended  husband  comes  to  take  her, 
leads  her  away  to  his  house,  and  definitely  takes  up  his  abode 
with  her.  However,  if  after  a given  time  the  wife  remains 
childless,  the  parents  are  obliged  to  take  back  their  daughter 
and  return  a part  of  the  price  which  has  been  paid  them. 

A grown  woman  who  has  already  been  a mother  costs  quite 
six  times  the  price  of  a little  girl.  But  after  the  Mongwandi 
wife  has  produced  three  or  four  children,  the  husband  considers 
he  has  a sufficient  family.  He  is  then  ready  to  “lease”  his 
wife  to  another  man  for  an  initial  period  of  ten  or  twelve 
months  in  return  for  a fixed  sum  in  goods.  If  during  the 
period  of  the  “lease  ” the  woman  becomes  a mother,  her  child 
is  legally  the  property  of  the  tenant.  If,  on  the  other  hand, 
the  child  is  born  after  the  expiration  of  the  agreed  period,  it  is 
the  property  of  the  lawful  husband.  Sometimes,  in  return  for 
a further  sum,  prolongations  of  the  assignment  are  granted. 
Yet  the  Mongwandi  are  very  rigorous  on  the  subject  of  marital 
fidelity  (where  the  woman  is  concerned).  A woman  who 
commits  adultery  either  against  her  real  husband  or  any  tem- 
porary mate  to  whom  he  may  have  allotted  her  is  punished  as 
follows.  Her  body  is  coated  with  a mixture  of  soot  and  oil 
and  her  head  is  grotesquely  decorated  with  cock’s  plumes. 
Then  a string  is  tied  to  her  waist  and  she  is  led  by  her  relations 
to  an  enclosure  in  the  village  square  made  of  hunting-nets 
stretched  on  stakes.  Inside  this  enclosure  all  her  family  defile 
before  her,  loading  her  with  reproaches  and  whipping  her  with 
rods.  Then  the  nets  are  drawn  aside  and  the  wretched  woman 
makes  a rush  for  her  husband’s  house,  followed  by  many 
missiles — sticks,  stones,  clods  ‘of  earth. 

The  Banza  of  the  region  between  the  Mongala  River  and 
the  east  bank  of  the  lower  Mubangi  are  monogamous  in 
principle,  and  as  they  are  physically  one  of  the  finest  peoples 
of  the  Congo  basin,  they  show  the  ultimate  advantage  of  this 
principle.  In  this  tribe — exceptionally — men  attend  to  agri- 
culture, and  women  enjoy  generally  much  consideration. 
Adultery  is  punishable  by  death,  but  the  extreme  penalty  is  not 
always  enforced. 


678  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  attractive  Bangala  woman  joins  her  husband  at  his 
fishing,  and  while  he  skilfully  handles  the  net,  she  guides  the 
light  canoe  with  a surprising  dexterity.  Polygamy  is  common, 
and  divorce  equally  so.  Nevertheless  adultery  is  sternly  sup- 
pressed ; the  guilty  one  has  an  ear  cut  off  and  the  calf  of  the 
leg  is  pierced  with  a spear-head. 

The  Babangi  ( Bayanzi ) women  and  their  relations  with  their 
husbands  are  frequently  touched  on  by  Grenfell  in  the  extracts 
from  his  diary  given  in  chapter  xvi.  Formerly,  before  the 
influx  of  the  European,  the  Bayanzi  women  (slaves  or  widows) 
formed  little  bands  of  travelling  courtesans  who  plied  their 

trade  up  and  down 
the  Conoco  between 
the  Equatorial  re- 
gion and  Stanley 
Pool. 

The  free  Ban- 
gata  women  (Equa- 
tor)  work  like 
slaves,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  fa- 
vourite. 

The  Mongo  or 
Ndolo  wife  (Equa- 
tor) is  regarded  as 
an  absolutely  in- 
ferior being. 

The  Bakongo , 
Babwende , Basundi , 
Eski-Kongo,  and  kindred  tribes  of  the  western  Congo  and 
coast  region  have  a high  regard  for  the  marriage  tie,  and  the 
woman  and  man  guilty  of  adultery  are,  both  the  one  and  the 
other,  punished  for  a crime  committed  against  conjugal  fidelity. 
Young  girls  are  married  as  soon  as  they  reach  the  age  of 
puberty,  usually  about  twelve  years  old  ; young  men  as  soon 
as  they  are  rich  enough  to  buy  a consort.  Usually  marriage 
takes  place  by  mutual  consent,  so  that  there  are  marriages  of 
affection. 

Chiefs,  with  the  object  of  advancing  their  children  and 
creating  friendly  relations  with  the  neighbouring  tribes,  betroth 
their  children  very  young.  The  young  people  go  through  a 
courtship.  When  the  lover  formally  introduces  himself,  the 
young  girl  flies  across  the  fields  screaming  as  if  she  had  seen  a 
wolf,  but  she  does  not  run  away  far  when  the  wolf  pleases  her. 


362.  WOMAN  AS  A BEAST  OF  BURDEN  IN  THE 
BABANGI  COUNTRIES 
(Lukolela  women  carrying  loads  of  firewood.) 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  679 

The  intended  husband  buys  the  young  girl  of  her  father.  He 
is  obliged  to  supply  the  dowry,  his  wife’s  trousseau,  and  to  pro- 
vide her  with  a house,  with  all  cooking  and  cleaning  utensils. 
Further,  he  has  to  defray  the  cost  of  the  feast  to  which  the 
relatives  of  both  families  are  invited.  The  day  of  the  wed- 
ding there  is  a banquet  at  which  pork  forms  the  main  dish.  The 
feast  is  accompanied  by  songs  and  dances. 

A mother  who  sees  her  daughter  of  an  age  to  pass  under 
the  control  of  a husband  shuts  up  the  young  girl  in  the  nzo- 
nkumbi , the  dressing-room.  The  “dressing”  consists  in  colour- 
ing bright  red  all  the  black  skin  of  the  young  woman. 

The  first  material  is  the  red  powder  called  tukula  so  much 
used  all  over  the  Equatorial  Congo,  which  is  obtained  by 
rubbing  against  each  other  two  pieces  of  wood  broken  from  the 
tree  called  locally  mengamenga  or  zukunga  (perhaps  a Pterocar- 
pus  or  Baphict).  Small  stones  intercalated  between  the  two 
pieces  of  wood  serve  the  purpose  of  sand-paper,  and  produce 
the  powder  by  scraping  the  wood.  The  powder,  being  wetted 
from  time  to  time  by  a little  water  during  the  operation,  is 
next,  when  a sufficient  quantity  has  been  obtained,  largely 
increased  by  the  addition  of  palm  oil,  so  as  to  produce  a liquid 
varnish  of  a brilliant  and  sticky  red.  Of  this  varnish  the 
woman  who  superintends  the  dressing  takes  a good  mouthful, 
which  she  vigorously  ejects  over  the  face,  arms,  legs,  back,  in 
short  the  whole  body  of  the  young  girl.  This  varnishing  is 
repeated  daily  for  many  weeks,  lasting  a longer  or  shorter  time 
according  to  the  fortune  of  the  girl’s  intended  husband.  If  rich, 
he  can  cut  short  the  adornment  of  his  beautiful  bride  by  de- 
positing the  agreed  price  for  the  purchase  of  his  future  wife.  In 
the  contrary  case,  she  will  remain  shut  up,  subjected  to  daily 
painting,  sometimes  for  two  months. 

In  itself,  except  for  the  seclusion  in  the  nzo  nkumbi,  the 
operation  of  painting  is  in  no  way  painful.  Even  the  said 
seclusion  is  brightened  by  the  presents  which  her  betrothed 
sends  : a beautiful  loin-cloth  quite  new,  a big  slice  of  pork,  on 
which  the  girl  will  be  allowed  to  regale  herself  at  home  with 
her  friends.  There  is  more:  before  entering  her  retire- 
ment she  has  had  an  opportunity  of  setting  in  order  the  plan- 
tations of  her  future  husband,  and  he  has  rewarded  her  by  more 
than  one  jug  of  palm  wine. 

These  gifts,  however,  are  not  always  received  with  alacrity. 
The  bride  knows  that  thenceforth  the  joyous  days  of  her  youth 
have  passed,  and  that  her  future  husband,  now  so  generous,  will 
to-morrow  and  for  all  her  life  oblige  her  to  work  hard  for  him. 


68o  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


However,  in  the  more  civilized  region  between  Matadi  and 
Leopoldville  the  young  husband  during  the  first  year  of  marriage 
often  supplies  a female  slave  to  till  the  ground,  while  the  free 
woman  occupies  herself  about  the  yards  and  only  works  when 
she  pleases — which  is  not  often.  But  this  indulgence  does  not 
generally  outlast  the  birth  of  the  first  child. 

At  the  approach  of  a Kongo  wedding  the  women  of  the 
village  inhabited  by  the  bride  go  to  feast  at  the  house  of 

the  future  husband.  The  day  after  there 
is  a gala  repast  at  the  house  of  the  brides 
father.  Here  is  a description  of  such  a 
feast.  All  the  women  of  the  neighbour- 
hood arrive,  carrying  pots  and  pans 
necessary  to  cook  the  pig  which  has  been 
provided  by  the  bride’s  parents.  The 
bride  appears  in  festive  attire,  with  her 
body  coloured  bright  red.  Her  face  is 
painted  white,  and  this  makes  her  look  a 
perfect  scarecrow  ; but  as  it  is  the  fashion 
neither  she  nor  her  visitors  feel  uncom- 
fortable. It  is  the  convention,  however, 
for  the  Qfirl  to  dance  in  order  to  show  her 
happiness  at  being  the  occasion  of  such  a 
feast.  “ So  this  red  phantom  with  a white 
mask  whirls  around  in  impossible  capers 
to  celebrate  the  last  feast  of  her  youth 
and  freedom”  (Father  Geens). 

Prior  to  this  feast  the  husband’s  father 
has  contracted  with  the  medicine-man  of 
the  village  to  placate  and  pray  to  the 
Mbingu  fetish  so  that  his  son’s  marriage 
may  be  fruitful. 

The  day  after  the  wedding  feast  the 
bride  removes  the  red  dye  and  resumes  the  natural  tint 
of  her  skin.  About  midday  men  bind  her  with  bush-rope 
and  carry  her  in  that  condition  to  her  husband’s  house. 
She  is  accompanied  by  her  bridesmaids,  who  dance  and  sing- 
appropriate  phrases.  She  is  left  tied  up  in  the  new  home 
and  is  speedily  released  by  the  husband,  who  is  all  amia- 
bility. But  a day  or  two  afterwards  she  may  run  back 
home  out  of  coquetry,  outraged  modesty,  or  for  some  real 
grievance  with  her  new  life.  She  is  speedily  recaptured,  and 
perhaps  receives  a mock  beating,  or  a real  one,  till  at  last  she 
settles  down  into  married  life. 


363.  BAKONGO  WOMAN  AND 
CHILD  AT  KIBOKOLO, 
ZOMBO  PLATEAU 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  683 

The  spread  of  Christianity  and  European  ideas  of  marriage 
have  largely  rendered  these  customs  above  described  obsolete 
along  the  south  bank  of  the  Lower  Congo  and  at  San  Salvador. 
In  no  direction  have  the  Christian  missions  done  better  work 
than  in  elevating  the  ideas  of  the  people  in  regard  to  marriage 
and  the  rearing  of  children. 

In  South-West  Congoland  and  throughout  the  southern  part 
of  the  Congo  basin  the  ceremonies  attending  marriage  are  some- 
what similar  to  those  of  the  western  Congo.  There  is  a drink- 
ing  feast  at  the  bride’s  father’s  house,  and  the  bride  is  often 
painted  red,  with  the 
dust  of  red  wood  in 
the  north,  with  red 
clay  and  mutton-fat 
in  the  south. 

Torday,  how- 
ever, says  there  is 
little  or  no  ceremony 
amongst  the  Ba- 
huana  of  the  great 
Kwilu  River.  After 
a prolonged  court- 
ship of  the  young 
marriageable  girl 
(not  remarkable  for 
reticence  on  either’s 
part)  the  man  asks 
permission  to  marry 
her  from  her  mother , 
and  after  giving  the 
latter  a small  present 
and  obtaining  her  consent  takes  the  young  woman  henceforth  to 
live  with  him. 

Women  enjoy  much  consideration  among  the  Ba-kioko , 
A-lunda , Baluba,  Barua , and  Bakuba.  In  the  Luba-Lunda 
empires  and  kingdoms  there  are  real  queens  and  princesses,  and 
some  of  the  ceremonies  and  titles  connected  with  the  mothers 
or  consorts  of  chiefs  remind  one  of  similar  customs  in  Uganda. 

Torday  states  that  in  the  Bahuana  tribe  a peculiar  tabu, 
similar  to  the  Hlonipa  of  the  Zulu- Kafir , exists  between  a man 
and  his  parents-in-law;  he  may  never  enter  their  house,  and  if  he 
meets  them  in  a road  he  must  turn  aside  into  the  bush  to  avoid 
them.  On  the  other  hand,  a wife  may  visit  her  husband’s 
parents,  and  is  expected  to  show  them  great  respect,  but  she 


365.  A POT  FROM  THE  LOWER  CONGO,  USED  FOR  THE 
DISPENSING  OF  BEER  AT  A WEDDING  FEAST 


684  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

must  avoid  her  husband’s  maternal  uncle  in  the  same  way  as  he 
avoids  her  parents.  The  only  reason  given  for  this  avoidance 
was  that  they  were  “ashamed.”  There  are  traces  of  this 
practice  among  the  Bakongo  on  the  west  and  in  the  Lunda, 
Luba,  and  Tanganyika  countries. 


The  social  organization  of  Congoland  begins  with  the  clan 
or  even  the  village.  There  is  little  sympathy  or  fellow-feeling 
for  the  stranger,  the  outlander : though  in  the  north,  south,  and 
west  the  great  movements  and  invasions  that  have  taken  place 
since  (we  may  vaguely  guess)  the  twelfth  century  have  built  up 
here  and  there  a nation,  a brotherhood,1  a caste,  an  aristocracy, 
which  has  beaten  down  the  isolation  of  villages  and  small  com- 
munities and  created  more  extended  sympathies  and  sentiments 
of  union  against  some  other  nationality  or  race. 

But  there  is  very  little  desire  for  exogamy  or  marriage  with 
a stranger,  rather  the  reverse  ; there  is  a greater  tendency  to- 
wards marrying  in  and  in,  barely  stopping  short  of  incest. 
Marriage  between  cousins  is  nowhere  disapproved,  but  uncle 
and  niece  (and  of  course  father  and  daughter,  mother  and  son) 
is  everywhere  tabued.  So,  out  of  the  close  blood  kinship  of  the 
village  or  the  camp  have  arisen  these  brotherhoods,  fighting 
castes,  nationalities.  Outsiders  first  were  killed  (and  perhaps 
eaten),  then,  later,  enslaved.  Gradually  the  slaves  have  de- 
veloped in  the  older  and  more  settled  nations  into  serfs,  villeins, 
peasantry,  labouring  classes.  Free  men  and  women,  in  time, 
came  to  be  sold — or,  in  payment  of  some  debt,  to  sell  them- 
selves. Mothers  sold  their  children  in  times  of  famine.  And 
as  the  need  grew  for  a better  and  more  complex  social  organ- 


1 These  brotherhoods  or  clans  are  particularly  noticeable  in  the  southern  half  of 
the  Congo  basin,  where  they  are  indicated  by  the  prefix  Bena , an  old  Bantu  plural  for 
“ brothers  ” ( not  children,  as  it  is  frequently  translated  by  writers  who  confuse  it  with 
Ba?ia).  Ba-ina  (Bena)  is  the  plural  form  of  Mu-ina,  of  which  the  terminal  root  is  con- 
nected with  “ mother  ” or  “womb.”  Similar  terms  originally  meaning  “men”  or 
“natives,”  are  the  Bakwa -,  Bafwa -,  Bavwa-,  and  Bashi -,  Ashi-  of  South-Western  and 
North-Eastern  Congoland.  There  are  the  Bena-kamba  (Brothers  of  the  Tortoise 
Clan?);  the  Bena-diamba,  Brothers  of  Hemp  (smoking);  Bena  Lulua  (Brothers  of  the 
Lulua  River)  ; the  Bakwa  Mosinga  (Brothers  of  the  Cord) ; Bafwa-mboli  (Brothers 
of  the  Rouge) ; and  Bashi-lange,  Eshi- Kongo,  etc.  Mu -lunda  means  a brother  or 
comrade;  so  does  Mu -gandaj  from  which  in  time  grew  up  the  great  nations  of  the  A- 
or  Ba-lunda  (with  their  variant  prefixes,  Kalunda , Tulunda ) and  the  Ba-ganda.  It  is 
possible  that  the  root  -yanzi  (Ba-yanzi)  may  be  derived  from  a similar  origin  as  -ga?ida 
(brother,  comrade).  \Bangi,  in  Ba-bangi , seems  to  mean  “forerunner,”  “first  arrival.”] 
Many  of  these  clans  were  associated,  no  doubt,  at  an  earlier  time  with  Totemism 
[ vide  present  writer’s  work  on  Uganda  Protectorate\  each  family,  brotherhood,  com- 
munity, adopting  some  creature,  vegetable,  or  object  as  their  totem,  family  fetish,  deity, 
or  mythical  ancestor.  There  are  traces  of  this  former  totemism  in  many  parts  of  the 
Congo  basin  except  amongst  the  Pygmies,  but  tabus  in  regard  to  food  ox  marriage  are 
now  almost  extinct. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  685 

ization,  slaves  from  outlying  tribes  were  purchased  for  the  labour 
force  of  prosperous  communities,  or  wars  were  made  for  the 
express  purpose  of  enslaving  whole  populations. 

Now  everything  is  in  a state  of  flux  : Jack  is  as  good  as  his 
master  in  many  districts  directly  under  the  white  man’s  rule. 
Therefore  the  notes  that  follow  are  almost  out  of  date,  and  refer 
chiefly  to  the  days  before  the  European  in  ten  or  twenty  years 
upset  Congoland  society  from  top  to  bottom. 

Amongst  the  Bayaka  the  barrier  between  the  slave  and  the 
freeman  is  extremely  well  defined.  A freeman  is  restricted  by 
public  opinion  in  his  choice  of  a wife  to  women  of  his  own  class, 
and  is  not  allowed  to  keep  slave  concubines.  The  aristocratic 
Bakuba  of  the  central  Congo  basin  also  object  to  unions  between 
freemen  and  slaves.  Among  many  tribes,  however,  the  slave  is 
treated  almost  on  a footing  of  equality  by  his  master,  and  the 
latter  will  frequently  (on  a kindly  impulse)  declare  him  free. 
Amongst  the  riverain  populations  of  the  Upper  Congo  from 
Stanley  Pool  to  Stanley  Falls  (Bayanzi,  Bangata,  Bangala, 
Mongo,  Ngombe,  Bapoto)  it  is  difficult  to  distinguish  the  chief 
and  the  freeman  from  the  slave.  Slaves  frequently  become 
chiefs. 

A slave  has  the  right  to  possess  a house  and  cultivated  lands, 
but  he  is  obliged  to  yield  part  of  his  harvest  to  his  master,  and 
also  a tithe  of  the  results  of  his  hunting  and  fishing.  He  has 
not  the  right  to  dispose  of  his  property.  At  his  death  all  he 
possesses  reverts  to  his  master  ; his  children  are  slaves. 

Among  the  eastern  Bayanzi  the  great  chiefs  usually  have  a 
confidential  adviser  or  minister,  who  is  almost  invariably  a 
slave.  This  slave  often  impersonates  the  chief  on  the  first  visit 
of  strangers  who  are  regarded  with  suspicion.  The  chief  is,  as 
a rule,  but  not  always,  the  head  fetish-man.  The  slaves  of  the 
Bayanzi  are  mostly  Bayanzi  themselves,  their  slave  status  being 
hereditary.  Some  chiefs  breed  slaves,  regularly  selecting  male 
slaves  for  their  qualities  as  sires,  and  mating  them  with  selected 
wives. 

The  Basoko  slave  (Aruwimi  confluence)  is  equally  privileged 
with  the  slaves  of  Bayanzi  and  Bateke  in  that  he  has  the  right 
to  hold  property  subject  to  the  condition  of  paying  his  master 
tithes  on  the  proceeds  of  his  crops,  his  hunting,  and  his  fishing. 
This  right  of  holding  property,  however,  in  reality  is  no  more 
than  a right  of  usufruct : in  practice  he  cannot  dispose  of  his 
goods,  which  on  his  death  return  to  his  master. 

Among  the  Bateke  of  the  western  Congo  the  master  pro- 
vides lodging  and  fqod  for  the  slave,  and  even  buys  him  a wife  ; 


686  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


he  puts  him  in  the  way  of  obtaining  his  own  means  of  livelihood, 
and  it  happens  that  some  slaves  are  in  this  way  ultimately 
enabled  to  grow  rich  and  outstrip  their  masters.  Such  was  the 
origin  of  Ngaliema,  alternately  the  ally  and  the  foe  of  the 
infant  Congo  Free  State  at  Ntamo,  Stanley  Pool.  Ngaliema 
had  been  bought  as  a little  boy  for  a plate  (it  is  said).  He  set 
up  as  an  ivory  trader  at  the  west  end  of  Stanley  Pool,  and 
eventually  developed  into  a great  chief. 

The  Banziri  and  other  tribes  of  the  north-western  Mubangi 
were  said  by  travellers  and  Baptist1  and  Belgian  missionaries  to 
breed  slaves  for  the  food  market,  regularly  fattening  them  for 
the  purpose,  the  slaves  even  developing  into  a peculiarly  brutish 
type  so  far  as  intelligence  was  concerned  : but  M.  Auguste 
Chevalier,  in  his  recent  work,2  which  deals  with  the  Chad- 
Shari- Mubangi  regions,  denies  the  exactitude  of  these  stories. 
The  practice,  however,  may  have  been  in  vogue  twenty  and  ten 
years  ago,  and  have  ceased  now  under  French  and  Belgian  rule. 

Among  the  Ababua-Babati  of  the  Wele-Bomokandi-Rubi 
rivers  the  mass  of  the  population  consists  of  serfs  or  slaves — 
the  Babua  or  Babati  proper.  Defaulting  debtors,  prisoners 
taken  in  intertribal  warfare,  and  the  children  of  slaves  assist  to 
make  up  the  serf  population,  which  is  ruled  over  (more  or  less 
indulgently)  by  a caste  of  freemen  and  chiefs  who  are  obviously 
the  descendants  of  a superior  negroid  race — perhaps  allied  to 
the  now  hated  Nyamnyam.  All  alike,  serfs  and  freemen,  speak 
debased  Bantu  dialects. 

As  human  nature  sweetened,  however,  in  the  slow  upward 
growth  of  civilization  in  the  Congo  basin,  friendship  with  total 
strangers  and  outsiders  was  conceived  as  a possibility,  either 
because  those  strangers  wielded  or  were  thought  to  wield 
superior  powers  (spiritual  if  not  physical)  or  because  of  some 
inherent  trait  of  kindliness  even  in  savagest  man.  So  that 
slavery  was  not  the  only  alternative  to  death  when  some  stranger 
found  himself  suddenly  in  contact  with  a community  of  Forest 
negroes.  But  then  the  curious  logic  of  the  savage  mind  which 
underlies  so  much  nonsense  of  fetish,  ritual,  and  empiric  reme- 
dies came  into  play.  If  the  new-comer,  the  outsider,  was  not  to 
be  killed  and  eaten  or  enslaved,  he  “must  become  one  of  us,” 
must  be  a “ blood-brother.”  Hence  arose  the  widespread 
practice  of  the  exchange  of  blood. 

1 Dr.  Holman  Bentley,  from  native  reports. 

2 LAfrique  Centrale  Franqaise.  Challamel.  Paris,  1908.  This  book  gives 
much  ethnographical  information  on  the  northern  Mubangi  basin. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  687 

When  the  present  writer  attempted  to  ascend  or  explore  the 
Upper  Congo  (beyond  Stanley  Pool)  in  1883,  at  every  place  where 
the  boat  or  canoe  stopped  for  a night’s  rest  or  a prolonged  so- 
journ a proposal  of  blood- brotherhood  was  made  by  the  chief  or 
head-man  as  an  alternative  to  hostilities  or  isolation.  Sometimes 
the  sacrifice  was  exchanged  through  delegates,  because  after  I 
had  acquired  about  half  a dozen  boisterous  black  brothers  my 
arms  became  very  sore  with  the  tiny  cuts  made  for  the  blood- 
letting. 

But  in  those  days,  before  the  white  man  had  often  shown 
himself  (with  many  honourable  exceptions)  a treacherous  black- 
guard, the  exchange  of  blood  was  an  emphatic  guarantee  for 
peace  and  friendship  on  the  part  of  the  native. 

“ Among  the  Bapoto  of  the  northernmost  Congo”  (writes  Grenfell), 
“ before  an  exchange  of  blood  takes  place  between  the  stranger  and  the 
chief,  the  local  medicine-man  kills  a fowl  and  consults  its  entrails.  If 
the  verdict  is  favourable,  then  the  exchange  of  blood  takes  place.  Some- 
times the  ceremony  is  accompanied  by  the  planting  of  a tree  or  the 
cutting  open  of  a young  palm.  Each  ‘ brother’  must  touch  or  taste  the 
blood  of  his  new  comrade.” 

Among  the  Mongwcindi  or  even  the  Bantu  tribes  of  the 
Mongala  River  the  following  ceremonies  were  customary  : — 

Two  sponsors  are  appointed  for  each  side,  that  of  the 
arriving  stranger  and  the  community  that  desires  or  permits  the 
blood-brotherhood.  Then  an  incision  is  made  in  the  arm  of 
the  chief  and  in  that  of  the  stranger  or  guest,  followed  by  a 
rubbing  together  of  the  two  bleeding  arms.  After  that  a dog 
is  brought  forward  ; the  stranger  is  requested  to  hold  a back 
paw  with  his  two  sponsors,  the  chief  and  two  men  take  the 
other  paw,  each  side  pulling  against  the  other.  Then  a native 
with  the  stroke  of  a knife  cleaves  the  animal  in  two,  after  which 
the  chief’s  sponsors,  with  the  half  of  the  dog  which  has  re- 
mained in  their  hands,  sprinkle  and  cover  the  stranger  with 
blood,  entrails,  etc.,  while  the  stranger’s  sponsors  do  the  same 
to  the  chief. 

In  Marungu  and  on  the  west  shore  of  Lake  Tanganyika  the 
formalities  are  of  a different  kind.  A big  mat  is  spread  on  the 
ground  and  the  two  contracting  parties  sit  on  it,  one  facing  the 
other,  in  the  midst  of  an  immense  gathering  of  the  dependents 
of  either  party,  who  are  ranged  in  a circle  ; a noble,  a chief,  or 
an  old  man  presides.  The  celebrated  Captain  Storms  has 
described  what  takes  place  after  these  preliminaries. 

“ The  president  ordered  two  chickens  to  be  killed,  and  their  livers 


688  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


were  roasted  in  our  presence.  During  this  time,  one  of  the  * nyampara’ 
(inferior  chiefs)  of  Mpala  made  an  incision  in  my  chest  with  a spear-head, 
while  one  of  my  men  did  the  same  to  the  negro  sultan.  The  grilled 
livers  were  then  brought  us  steeped  in  the  blood  of  the 
future  brothers.  I put  in  the  mouth  of  the  ‘Mtemi’ 
(chief)  the  liver  moistened  with  my  blood,  while  he 
made  me  eat  the  liver  moistened  with  his  own.  In 
short,  a little  lunch  not  very  appetizing. 

“The  first  part  of  the  ceremony  was  over.  Next 
we  came  to  the  oaths,  which  were  pronounced  by  third 
persons.  The  whole  time  they  lasted,  spear-points 
were  clashed  above  the  head  of  each  of  the  initiated. 

“‘Mtemi,’  said  a black  orator,  addressing  himself 
to  Mpala,  ‘you  are  now  the  white  man’s  brother;  if 
you  do  him  harm,  him,  or  any  one  belonging  to  him, 
you  will  die  ; if  you  make  war  on  him,  you  will  die, 
the  members  of  your  family  will  die,  and  your  power 
disappear.’ 

“ Lusinga,  chief  of  the  district,  then  took  up  the 
discourse  and  addressing  himself  to  me  : ‘ White  man,’ 
said  he,  ‘the  oath  of  friendship  by  which  you  bind 
yourself  to-day  to  Mpala  should  be  sincere ; you  come 
in  the  midst  of  us,  you  cannot  despise  us.  If  you  do 
evil  to  Mpala  or  any  one  belonging  to  him,  you  will 
die;  if  you  make  war  on  him,  you  will  die;  all  your 
people  will  die  and  your  power  pass  away.’  ” 

ffM  Justice  is  administered  in  large  and  small  com- 

munities by  the  head-man  of  the  village,  the  chief 
of  a district,  or  the  supreme  king,  according  to 
the  gravity  of  the  cause  or  the  stake  at  issue. 
There  is  almost  invariably  a council  of  elders  that 
takes  part  in  the  deliberations  and  concurs  in  or 
sways  the  verdict.  Counsel  is  heard  on  both 
sides,  and  very  eloquent,  pithy,  and  logical  can 
be  the  forensic  oratory. 

In  the  kingdom  of  Kongo,  before  the  direct 
imposition  of  Portuguese  administration,  the  ad- 
ministration of  justice — in  civil  cases,  at  any 
rate — had  become  an  operatic  farce.  The  verdict 
nearly  always  went  to  the  party  that  bribed 
highest  king,  councillors,  and  courtiers.  An  old 
tradition  asserted  that  pleadings,  defence,  ex- 
amination of  witnesses,  addresses  to  the  court, 
must  be  treated  rhythmically,  poetically,  and  sung  with  or 
without  an  accompaniment  of  music.  The  result  (as  described 
by  the  Rev.  Thomas  Lewis,  of  the  Baptist  Mission  in  Portuguese 
Congo)  came  near  to  being  an  African  travesty  of  Gilbert  and 


1 


366.  A FLY-WHISK 
ALWAYS  CARRIED 
BY  HEAD-MEN, 
CHIEFS,  OR  PUB- 
LIC ORATORS  AT 
TRIALS  HELD 
AMONG  THE  NA- 
TIVES OF  THE 
LOWER  MUBANGI 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  689 

Sullivan’s  Trial  by  Jury.  But  elsewhere  in  Congoland  (except 
in  the  Lunda,  and  Luba  countries,  where  there  are  traces  of  the 
same  operatic  procedure)  trials  before  chief  and  councillors  are 
often  decorous  and  business-like,  and  even  result  in  unbribed 
justice  being  administered,  though  the  punishments  are  cruel. 

In  the  northern  regions,  obviously  tinged  with  non-negro 
blood  and  culture,  trial  by  combat  exists  side  by  side  with  the 
trial  by  ordeal,  or  summary  decisions  of  the  head-man,  chief, 
or  chief-in-council.  By  far  the  commonest  expedient  (involving 
no  strain  on  the  intellect  or  judicial  responsibility)  is  the  trial 
by  ordeal. 

The  chief  form  of  ordeal  is  the  drinking  of  a poisonous 
decoction,  known  over  much  of  Western  Congoland  as  Nkasa. 
This  is  similar  to  the  Mwavi  of  Nyasaland  and  south-west 
Tanganyika,  the  Chifafa  of  Lubaland,  Ibunu  of  the  Bateke, 
Mbondo,  Mbondi  or  Nka  of  the  Upper  Congo,  Mondenge  of 
the  lower  Aruwimi,  and  Samba  of  the  Lokele. 

In  the  Lower  Congo  region  the  nkasa  or  ordeal  poison  is 
said  to  be  made  from  the  bark  of  Erythrophlczum  guineense , 
which  is  the  tree  used  in  Nyasaland  and  perhaps  on  the 
Guinea  coast.  This  is  stripped  off  by  the  medicine-man,  who 
smashes  it  up  and  triturates  it  with  water  into  a paste.  If 
the  medicine-man  desires  to  kill  his  victim  outright  he  mixes  a 
Sirychncs  or  other  poison  with  it.  If  the  man  does  not  care, 
or  has  been  bribed  to  save  the  life  of  the  accused,  the  mixture 
is  probably  a simple  decoction,  more  or  less  strong,  of  the 
Erythrophlceum  bark. 

“ The  person  who  has  to  go  through  the  Nka  ordeal  stands  on  a 
stone  or  other  marked  spot,  from  which  he  may  not  stir.  The  ceremony 
generally  takes  place  in  the  market-place  of  the  village  and  in  the 
middle  of  a great  assemblage  of  people,  the  girls  with  their  skins 
painted,  the  young  men  with  all  their  showiest  adornments  on.”  (Father 
Geens.) 1 

1 “ The  Nka  or  Mbondo,  of  which  Pere  Geens  speaks,  is  probably  the  root  of  a 
Strychnos  ( S . dewevrei ) ; but  is  it  really  the  root  which  is  named  Nka  or  rather  the 
trial,  and  in  that  case  is  not  Nka  an  abbreviation  for  Nkasa,  a name  under  which  this 
form  of  trial  is  known  in  many  regions  of  the  Congo?”  (Torday.) 

The  researches  of  Messrs.  T.  A.  Joyce  and  E.  Torday  based  on  the  writings  of 
various  Belgiah  botanists  and  of  Auguste  Chevalier  seem  to  show  that  the  poison  of 
the  ordeal  is  far  more  often  made  from  the  bark  or  roots  of  a Strychnos  than  from 
Erythrophlceum  guineense  of  Zambezia  and  Nyasaland.  E.  gumeense  has  been  re- 
corded along  all  the  Guinea  coast  from  the  Gambia  to  Old  Calabar,  and  R.  Brown, 
Tuckey’s  botanist,  is  supposed  to  have  collected  it  on  the  Lower  Congo.  Elsewhere 
it  is  found  in  Southern  Angola  and  thence  right  across  to  the  Indian  Ocean.  Torday 
says  it  is  the  source  of  the  ordeal  poison  on  the  upper  Kwilu,  but  does  not  make  the 
statement  very  positively.  It  is  certainly  the  poison  tree  of  Zambezia  and  Nyasaland 
and  South-East  Africa,  and  of  Northern  Guinea.  But  for  the  most  part  writers  on  West 
Africa  merely  copy  heedlessly  earlier  and  incorrect  authorities  in  making  Erythro- 
II.—  O 


690  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Of  what  is  evidently  a Strychnos  bush  (f  S.  dewevrei ),  used 
in  Western  Congoland,  Father  Geens  writes  the  following  de- 
scription in  his  interesting  book  Les  Missions  en  Chine  et  au 
Congo : — 

“ Nka  or  Mbondo  is  a red-coloured  root  of  a shrub  whose  name  I 
do  not  know.  That  is  the  source  of  the  poison  used  in  trials  by  ordeal. 
The  said  root  is  finely  grated  and  infused  in  cold  water,  which  the  man 
or  woman  accused  of  some  misdeed  is  afterwards  required  to  drink.  It 
even  happens  that  people  only  suspected  take  it  of  their  own  accord, 
in  order  to  prove  their  innocence.  In  short,  in  the  opinion  of  the 
negroes,  the  guilty  man  invariably  dies  of  this  poison  ; the  innocent  is 
only  rendered  indisposed. 

“ The  first  effect  of  the  drug  is  to  intoxicate.  The  people  who 

drink  it  take  care  to 
place  themselves  be- 
side a tree  or  stake, 
which  they  grasp  firmly 
when  their  head  begins 
to  reel,  for  a fall  at  this 
moment  would  be  proof 
of  their  guilt.” 

Father  Geens  says 
he  has  heard  of  an 
antidote  to  the  Nka 
poison  [which  must 
be  rapidly  applied], 
but  it  is  rarely  given, 
and  is  very  expen- 
sive. Grenfell  has 
many  entries  in  his 
diary  regarding  the 
poison  and  other  ordeals,  and  Bentley  has  written  on  the  subject 
in  his  Kongo  Dictionary  and  other  books.  Some  of  these 
opinions  and  incidents  have  been  already  quoted.  Here  are 
some  more  extracts  from  Grenfell.  Apparently,  according  to 
him,  the  poison  could  in  the  case  of  chiefs  be  taken  by  proxy. 

“25th  of  April  1890.  Ngo  Chaka  (of  Bolobo)  is  very  ill.  Ngo 
Ajilali  (his  son)  is  much  excited,  and  has  accused  Makwanja,  his 
father’s  chief  slave,  of  whom  he  is  jealous,  of  having  bewitched  the 

phlceum  the  source  of  ordeal  poison  on  the  Cameroons,  Gaboon,  and  Congo.  With  the 
doubtful  exception  of  the  Congo  coast  region,  it  is  a Strychnos  and  not  an  Erythro- 
phlceum  which  furnishes  the  nauseous  mixture  drunk  by  the  wretched  accused  at 
native  tribunals.  In  the  Gaboon  it  is  Strychnos  icaja ; Angola,  S.  dekindtiana;  Lower 
Congo,  S.  dewevrei  j Stanley  Pool,  5.  variabilis , congolana , etc.  ; Upper  Congo, 
S.  dewevrei,  schweinfurthii , longicaudata,  fioribunda,  demiflora,  gracitlima ; River 
Kwango,  S.  kipapa,  gillettii , tuberosaj  in  Katanga,  S.  unguacha  (also  used  as  an  eye 
medicine)  ; and  in  Northern  German  East  Africa,  S.  omphalocarpa. 


36 7.  A CLAY  POT  FROM  THE  BABANGI  OR  BAYANZI 
PEOPLE  OF  LUKOLELA  IN  WHICH  THE  NKA 
DECOCTION  HAS  BEEN  MIXED  FOR  AN  ORDEAL 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  691 

old  man.  Five  people  in  all  are  accused,  and  to-night  sleep  in  Ngo 
Chaka’s  house  previous  to  drinking  nkasa  to-morrow.  The  Ingana 
has  received  a fee  of  one  slave  and  four  brass  rods  for  pointing  out  the 
witch  (and  possibly  also  that  he  may  accuse  Makwanja) ; and  all  this 
after  Ngo  Ajilali  had  often  assured  Miss  Silvey  that  he  had  given  up 
all  belief  in  ndoki  and  charms ! These  people  evidently  think  we  are 
easily  imposed  on.  . . . Makwanja’s  slave  (a  slave’s  slave)  has  been 
his  proxy  in  drinking  nkasa , and  has  safely  passed  through  the  ordeal ; 
but  Ngo  Ajilali  is  not  content,  and  says  that  Makwanja  himself  must 
drink.  Makwanja  says  there  will  be  gun- firing  first.  I am  glad  he  is 
holding  out.  Poor  Ngo  Chaka’s  sister  has  succumbed  to  the  test 


368.  B.M.S.  HOUSE  AT  BOLOBO,  BUILT  ON  THE  PLACE  AT  WHICH 
ORDEALS  WERE  ADMINISTERED  TWENTY  YEARS  AGO 


to-day.  A man  also  is  so  low  that  he  is  not  expected  to  recover. 
Ngo  Chaka  himself  is  not  dead,  but  he  had  nothing  to  eat  till  noon 
to-day.  . . .” 

“25th  of  January  1894.  One  of  Mpeta’s  slaves  is  accused  of  theft 
by  a slave  of  Mpeta’s  brother  who  lives  a mile  or  so  further  north. 
To  rid  himself  of  the  accusation  of  having  stolen  a few  brass  rods  he 
is  asked  to  submit  to  the  nkasa  ordeal.  ‘No,’  he  said,  ‘ nkasa  is  tabu 1 
for  me,  but  I will  take  the  juice  of  a certain  tree  and  put  it  in  my  eye, 
and  if  I am  a thief  my  eye  will  never  see  again.’  But  nothing  would 
do  but  the  nkasa  test,  and  the  accused,  though  he  successfully  passed 
through  the  ordeal,  succumbed  a few  hours  later  to  the  effects  of  the 
poison.” 


See  pages  672,  683. 


692  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

“9th  July  1894.  Bonkanga  accused  of  having  bewitched  some 
one,  so  was  in  great  trouble  just  as  we  were  leaving.  He  died  a few 
days  ago,  and  left  instructions  that  they  were  to  dissect  his  body  and 
search  for  the  witch  marks.1  He  knew  he  had  not  ill-wished  the  deceased, 
and  was  ready  to  go  through  the  ordeal,  was  sure  nothing  to  incrimi- 
nate him  would  be  found  when  they  sought  for  it  in  his  own  dead  body. 
The  ‘wise  folk’  now  declare  after  the  examination  they  have  made  that 
Bonkanga  was  not  a witch.” 

As  Grenfell  indicates  in  the  last  paragraph  but  one,  there 
are  other  ordeals  than  that  of  drinking  poison. 

The  Azande  administer  the  poison  to  a fowl  : its  death  or 
recovery  determines  the  guilt  or  innocence  of  the  accused.  The 
Ababua  (Abarambo)  follow  this  method. 

Among-  the  Ngombe  along  the  south  bank  of  the  northern 
Congo  two  disputants  will  agree  to  drink  Mbondo  ( Strychnos ) 
poison  out  of  the  same  pot  or  calabash  : one  will  die,  perhaps  ; 
the  other  may  eject  the  poison  and  survive. 

Apart  from  the  poison  ordeal  there  are  many  other  methods 
of  determining  innocence  or  guilt.  In  Western  Congoland 
(Bateke,  Bakongo,  Eshi- Kongo)  a hot  cutlass  is  passed  three 
times  over  the  skin  of  the  leg,  or  boiling  water  is  thrown  over 
the  same  place.  If  the  patient  is  neither  scalded  nor  severely 
burnt  he  is  innocent.  Or  a small  bead  is  inserted  under  the  eye- 
lid. If  it  works  round  behind  the  eyeball  the  sufferer  is  guilty. 
Lots  also  are  drawn  from  pieces  of  thatching-grass  of  different 
lengths  to  decide  as  to  culpability  in  small  matters. 

The  Ngombe  of  the  northern  Congo  practise  in  some 
cases  the  ordeal  of  the  Mokungi^.  Sap  is  drawn  from  the  bark 
of  the  Mokungu , an  acacia-like  tree  which  grows  more  or  less 
everywhere  in  the  scrub.  This  trial  is  generally  reserved  for 
women,  who  do  not  drink  the  sap,  but  are  required  to  put  some 
drops  of  it  under  the  lid  of  one  of  their  eyes.  That  eye  is 
destroyed  in  the  case  of  a guilty  woman  ; the  innocent  woman 
is  supposed  to  feel  nothing.2  In  consequence  of  this  ordeal 
a good  many  one-eyed  women  are  found  in  Ngombe  towns. 

Then  there  is  the  Limbila.  If  any  one  is  suspected  of 
having  committed  a theft  in  the  plantations,  recourse  is  had  to 
Limbila.  A young  palm  tree  is  cut  in  two  pieces,  of  which  one 
is  thrown  on  the  road  and  the  other  in  the  plantations.  If  the 
thief  returns  to  the  field  to  continue  his  depredations  he  is 
bound  forthwith  to  contract  the  beriberi  disease.  The  Ngombe 
then  say,  “ Limbila  has  brought  about  his  sickness.” 

1 This  is  the  Likundu  of  the  Upper  Congo,  and  is  apparently  the  bile  gland  or 
gallbladder.  (H.  H.  J.) 

2 Vide  author’s  work  on  Liberia , p.  1068. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  693 

The  Ekutu  ordeal  consists  of  a gourd  bound  to  a stick 
which  is  driven  into  the  ground  in  the  plantations.  Thence- 
forth he  who  would  risk  stealing  a root  of  manioc  or  a few  ears 
of  maize  in  a field  guarded  by  this  fetish  will  be  rewarded  by 
the  likukit  (a  kind  of  elephantiasis). 

The  Likwctko  ordeal  of  the  Ngombe  is  like  the  eye  torture 
of  the  Western  Congo.  A small  piece  of  wood  is  placed  in- 
side the  eyelids  ; then  the  eye  is  vigorously  rubbed.  If  the 
person  is  guilty  of  the  crime  of  which  he  or  she  is  accused,  the 
portion  of  wood  will  not  come  out,  but  will  penetrate  into  the 
head.  If  it  emerges  at  once  after  the  rubbing  the  innocence 

o # O 

of  the  accused  is  proclaimed. 

When  any  one  is  suspected  of  theft  Libako  may  be  offered 
him.  Libako  is  a little  palm  leaf  which  is  placed  in  an  anthill. 
If  in  two  days’  time  the  palm  leaf  is  not  entirely  eaten  by  the 
termites  the  suspected  person  is  innocent. 

Another  form  of  Libako  is  to  place  a small  stick  on  the  road 
where  this  man  is  accustomed  to  walk.  If  guilty,  the  moment 
he  touches  this  twig  with  his  foot  he  will  at  once  be  seized  wTith 
a dysentery  wdfich  will  cause  his  death  within  a few  days. 

The  name  of  LEkwako  is  also  given  to  another  test  among 
the  Ngombe.  A duck  has  been  stolen,  for  instance,  and  people 
have  no  clue  to  lead  to  the  discovery  of  the  guilty  party.  In 
such  case  a plate  or  a shallow  pan  is  filled  with  water  and 
placed  on  a level  surface  on  the  village  street.  A small 
pointed  float  of  palm  wood  is  placed  on  the  surface  of  the 
water  and  the  people  watch  for  the  direction  taken  by  the 
pointed  end.  In  the  house  towards  which  it  points  dwells  the 
thief  who  has  stolen  the  duck. 

Naturally  the  occupants  of  this  house  will  one  after  another 
deny  the  theft,  but  will  have  to  undergo  at  their  choice  one  of 
the  tests  above  enumerated.  They  may  swear  “by  Mbondo ” 
that  they  are  innocent.  If  they  are  perjuring  themselves  they 
will  (it  is  thought)  at  once  die  of  dysentery. 

There  is  further  the  “ test  of  the  tomb  ” (found  elsewhere 
in  Congoland).  Some  one  dies,  and  it  is  clear  he  or  she  has 
fallen  victim  to  a spell  cast  by  some  enemy  or  impatient  heir. 
Relations,  friends,  and  suspected  persons  are  required  one  after 
the  other  to  sit  on  the  grave  and  say,  “ If  it  is  I that  have  cast 
a spell  over  you,  may  I die  this  moment.”  Sudden  death  under 
such  conditions  very  rarely  occurs,  but  if  any  of  the  attesting 
persons  do  die  within  a month  (say)  of  their  invocation,  their 
family  is  liable  to  be  heavily  mulcted  in  damages  by  the  relations 
of  the  person  referred  to  in  the  test  of  the  tomb. 


694  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  Bangala  invite  an  accused  person  to  step  over  a sword, 
believing  that  if  guilty  he  will  fall  down  dead.  The  Man- 
bettu  obtain  a wild  cat,  kill  it,  cook  it,  and  cut  the  flesh  up  into 
small  pieces,  pushing  one  of  the  morsels  under  the  tongue  of 
the  accused.  The  latter  must  then  fill  his  mouth  with  water 
and  eject  it  in  a single  attempt.  If  the  piece  of  meat  remains 
in  his  mouth  it  proves  he  is  innocent ; in  the  other  event,  he 
is  guilty  without  any  possibility  of  doubt. 

Akin  to  ordeals  and  tests,  in  a gradually  lessening  degree, 
are  oaths  and  affirmations.  In  many  parts  of  Congoland  un- 


369  SPECIMENS  OF  EXECUTIONER’S  CHOPPERS  AND  KNIVES  FROM  THE 
BANGALA  COUNTRY,  NORTHERN  CONGO 

sophisticated  natives  still  believe  in  a direct  punishment  of  God 
or  the  gods  following  on  perjury  (Grenfell  makes  many  allusions 
to  this  faith),  but  in  W estern  Congoland  long  acquaintance  with 
Europeans  and  a weakening  faith  in  the  powers  of  their  own 
fetishes  have  caused  most  of  their  invocations  to  be  as  trivial  as 
our  own. 

Oaths  are  taken  in  the  name  of  a fetish,  in  the  name  of  a 
secret  society,  or  by  invoking  the  chief’s  or  king’s  name  or  the 
burial-place  of  the  chieftain.  In  the  eastern  or  north-eastern 
part  of  Congoland  the  oath  is  sometimes  obscene.  The  most 
solemn  affirmation,  rarely  if  ever  used  with  levity,  is  “by  my 
father,”  “by  my  mother,”  “grandmother,”  “younger  brother,” 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  695 

“elder  brother.”  “May  my  mother  leave  me”1  reaches  the 
bed-rock  of  sincerity.  Cod  (Nzambi)  is  very  seldom  invoked, 
though  an  oath  sworn  by  the  Supreme  Spirit  of  the  sky  is 
uttered  in  seriousness  and  not  lightly  used. 

The  guilt  of  the  accused  by  test  or  ordeal  and  in  spite  of 
oath  or  perjury  having  been  de- 
cided by  the  chief  and  council 
(though  some  great  chieftains  of 
the  north  may  dispense  with  these 
time-wasting  formulae  and  deal  out 
summary  justice),  it  only  remains 
to  follow  up  the  verdict  by  a sen- 
tence, almost  certainly  cruel.  For 
minor  offences  or  inconvenient 
madness  (harmless  insanity  is 
pitied  and  left  unpunished)  the 
stocks  are  used,  release  being  only 
granted  after  the  payment  of  a 
fine.  Beating  with  rods  or  hippo- 
potamus-hide whips  was  a frequent 
punishment  of  a more  or  less 
family  nature  on  slaves  and  women. 

For  more  serious  yet  not  capital 
offences  there  was  tying  up  and 
selling  into  slavery.  Thieving  or 
a breach  of  minor  regulations  made 
by  the  chief  was — is — punished 
right  across  the  southern  Congo 
basin  by  cutting  off  one  hand,  two 
hands,  an  ear  or  two  ears.  These 
mutilations  are  particularly  charac- 
teristic of  the  Lunda-Luba  coun- 
tries from  the  River  Kwango  to 
Tanganyika  and  Mweru,  and 
northwards  to  Manyema.  A 
coward  who  runs  away  in  battle  has  one  foot  amputated.  The 
Manbettu  and  Nsakara  punish  theft  by  cutting  off  the  thief’s 
ear.  The  Bangala  award  this  punishment  to  adultery.  The 
death  penalty  is  nominally  reserved  for  (supposed)  murder 
through  sorcery  or  poison  [murder  with  weapons  or  manslaughter 
is  usually  compounded  by  paying  damages  to  relations]  and 
adultery.  In  the  last  case  the  extreme  penalty  is  rarely  in  dieted 

1 All  negroes  feel  a passionate  devotion  to  their  mothers. 


696  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

on  the  man  [except  it  be  adultery  with  the  wife  of  a big  chief] 
if  he  can  pay  damages.  In  Western  Congoland  the  methods 
of  execution  most  favoured  are  (i)  throwing  down  precipices, 
(2)  beating  or  stoning  to  death,  (3)  throat-cutting — besides,  of 

course,  the  administration  of  the 
poison  ordeal,  which  rarely  fails  to 
be  fatal. 

On  the  Upper  Congo  (Bayanzi, 
Bangala)  beheadal  is  perhaps  the 
favourite  way  of  killing.  The  head 
of  the  bound  and  kneeling  or  seated 
victim  is  tied,  under  the  jaws,  to  a 
bent-down  sapling.  The  executioner 
aims  a blow  at  the  strained  neck  with 
the  long  broad-bladed  knife  of  the 
Upper  Congo,  and — the  rest  can  be 
imagined.  But  in  this  riverain  region 

o # o 

many  victims  of  justice  are  drowned 
(writes  Grenfell). 

A good  many  of  the  northern  peo- 
ples (Nsakara,  Zande,  Bakangai,  Aba- 
bua)  employ  strangulation  or  (in  the 
case  of  the  Manbettu)  hanging  as  the 
mode  of  inflicting  death  : the  con- 
demned man  is  tied  by  his  neck  to 
the  trunk  of  a tree,  then  the  execu- 
tioners pull  his  limbs  with  all  their 
strength  till  death  ensues. 

Among-  the  Azande  death  sentences 
are  pronounced  by  the  chief  in  public 
audience  and  carried  out  on  the  spot. 
The  penalty  of  death  involves  strang- 
ling and  the  abandonment  of  the  body 
to  the  beasts  and  birds  of  prey,  unless 
the  judgment  provides  that  the  body 
shall  be  buried,  or  eaten  by  the  deceased’s  fellow-citizens ! 

There  also  occur  “half-and-half”  sentences  which  order 
half  the  body  to  be  buried  while  the  other  half  is  to  be  com- 
mitted to  the  scrub  for  the  sustenance  of  man-eating  beasts — 
or  cannibals. 

In  most  of  these  countries  chiefs  or  freemen  could  purchase 
exemption  from  the  death  penalty,  except  in  the  case  of  sorcery. 

In  a good  many  tribes  or  peoples  there  are  (or  were,  before 


371.  A BAHUANA  EXECUTION- 
ER’S SWORD  (S.W.  CONGOLAND, 
TORDAY  COLLECTION) 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  697 

the  disorganization  ensued  after  the  arrival  of  Arab  and  European 
conquerors)  national  councils , gatherings  of  the  adult  men  and 
elders,  to  discuss  questions  of  war  and  peace  with  other 
tribes,  or  the  internecine  quarrels  within  the  limits  of  their  own 
national  community.  At  these  councils — embryo  parliaments, 
which  should  be  preserved,  not  rudely  trampled  under  foot  by 
some  ignorant  European  official  as  they  often  are — the  judg- 
ments are  pronounced  in  accordance  with  the  will  of  the 
majority,  although  it  may  be  the  chief  who  announces  them  to 
the  assembly,  thus  clothing  them  with  a legal  character.  Meet- 
ings of  this  description  often  decide  larger  questions  of  coloniza- 
tion or  land  settlement,  where  undisputed  virgin  land  has  to  be 
dealt  with  on  a large  scale. 

“ The  natives”  (writes  Grenfell)  “ consider  that  the  forests  are 
a common  patrimony , which  every  one , chief,  freeman , or  slave , 
has  the  right  to  exploit  as  he  chooses .”  Personal  and  real  pro- 
perty is  private,  and  the  laws  of  inheritance  are  usually  very 
definite  in  each  tribe,  though  they  vary  markedly  in  principle. 
Fundamentally  inheritance  and  succession  seem  to  have 
passed  collaterally  (to  brothers  or  uncles,  sisters  or  sister’s 
sons)  rather  than  from  father  or  mother  to  child.  It  is  rare  in 
Congoland  law  for  women  to  be  considered  capable  of  holding 
property  in  their  own  right — they  are  themselves  chattels  to  be 
passed  on  to  others  at  the  death  of  their  husbands.  Never- 
theless Nature  often  asserts  herself  through  the  trammels  of 
man-made  law,  and  in  some  parts  of  the  Congo  (notably  in  the 
south  and  south-west)  there  can  be  women  chieftains  and  women 
holding  property  in  their  own  right. 

It  is  the  custom,  nearly  every  where,  for  the  mother  to  act  as 
guardian  to  a child  that  is  too  young  to  govern  his  own  estate. 
If  the  child  is  the  chief  of  the  village,  the  guardianship  is 
jointly  exercised  by  the  mother  and  the  freemen,  assisted  by 
their  slaves. 

On  the  Lower  Congo  among  the  A-solongo  there  exists  a 
combination  of  the  hereditary  principle  and  the  elective  system  ; 
and  although  in  theory  the  kingship  is  hereditary  by  the  collateral 
line  (to  sister’s  son  or  to  younger  brother),  the  assembly  of  free- 
men meets  to  appoint  the  successor  whom  custom  designates. 
In  the  kingdom  of  Kongo  (south  of  the  Lower  Congo)  there 
may  have  been  a brother-to-brother  or  uncle-to-nephew  succes- 
sion (broken  through  in  individual  cases)  until  the  commence- 
ment of  Portuguese  influence,  which  certainly  introduced  the 
father-to-son  arrangement. 

Among  the  Babwende  branch  of  the  Kongo  stock  who  dwell 


698  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


in  the  region  of  the  Cataracts,  on  the  death  of  a freeman  his 
property  is  divided  among  his  brothers,  sometimes  among  his 
sons,  never  among  his  wives. 

In  1890  Grenfell  notes  the  customs  of  inheritance  amongst 

the  Babangi  at 
Equator  Sta- 
tion. The  elder 
brother  claims 
the  wealth  of 
the  younger. 
The  younger 
cannot  buy  a 
wife  or  go  on  a 
journey  till  the 
elder  brother  is 
married.  Upon 
the  elder  having 
secured  two 
wives  it  be- 
comes his  duty 
to  help  pay  for 
a wife  for  his 
younger  bro- 
ther. Torday, 
however,  asserts 
that  with  the 
eastern  Bayanzi 
(Kwilu  - Kasai) 
inheritance  is 
from  father  to 
son:  failing- 
sons,  to  bro- 
thers. 

A m o n of  the 
Bay  aka,  inheri- 

372.  STAFF  OF  OFFICE  OF  THE  BALUBA  CHIEF  KAYUMBA,  tailCe  of  prO~ 
LAKE  KASALE,  NORTHERN  KATANGA  COUNTRY  (TORDAY  , V 

collection)  PertT  passes 

From  the  de- 
ceased to  his  eldest  brother.  With  the  Bakwese , Ba-achinji, 
and  Imbangala  of  the  middle  Kwango  and  upper  Kwilu 
property  and  authority  pass  from  brother  to  brother,  or  to  the 
mothers  brother’s  son,  or  occasionally  to  heirs  arbitrarily 
adopted. 

Among  the  Bahuana  a man’s  heir  is  his  eldest  brother,  in 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  699 

default  his  eldest  sister,  and  after  that  the  eldest  son  of  his 
eldest  sister.  If  a man  dies  without  an  heir  his  goods  are  burnt 
and  his  slaves  become  free. 

The  custom  of  the  Ba-mbala  is  that  a man’s  children  are 
considered  to  belong  to  the  eldest  brother  of  the  mother.  Kin- 
ship is  reckoned  very  far  on  the  female  side  ; on  that  of  the 
male  not  beyond  the  uncle  and  grandfather. 

In  the  Luba  countries  (south-central  Congo)  the  dead 
man’s  inheritance  passes  undivided  to  his  maternal  uncle; 
or  in  default  of  one,  to  his  brothers,  and  if  there  are 
none,  to  his  nephews.  Women  and  children  share  in  the 
inheritance,  and  as  for  the  wives  of  the  deceased,  the 
Levitical  law  is  followed.  With  the  Bakuba,  on  the  other 
hand,  kingly  succession  would  appear  to  be  from  father 
to  son . The  Basongo  of  the  Kasai- Sankuru  transmit  all 
property  and  all  authority  by  direct  succession  from  father 
to  son. 

In  all  the  tribes  of  the  northern  Congo  (Bangala,  Ngombe, 
Balolo)  and  of  the  western  Mubangi  and  Mongala,  excepting 
the  Bajande  (between  Aruwimi  and  Lulu),  the  inheritance  and 
property  of  a chief  or  a freeman  pass  to  his  younger  brother. 
If  he  has  no  brother  his  eldest  son  inherits  everything  to  the 
exclusion  of  all  the  other  children.  If  the  deceased  leaves 
no  son  the  property  goes  to  the  eldest  son  of  his  eldest 
daughter. 

Among  the  Bajande  the  eldest  son  inherits  all  his 
father’s  property  ; if  there  is  no  son  the  deceased’s  youngest 
brother  is  the  heir.  The  Nyamnyam  (Azande)  of  the 
Wele  and  the  Nsakara  of  the  Mbomu  follow  the  rule 
of  direct  transmission  from  father  to  son.  It  is  curious  that 
this  is  the  rule  with  most  intruding  and  conquering  tribes 
in  Africa. 

When  a chief  dies  without  an  heir  his  subjects  most 
frequently  abandon  their  village,  disperse,  and  seek  shelter 
among  their  neighbours.  It  sometimes  happens  that  some 
among  them  assemble  and  found  a new  village.  In  this  case 
the  dignity  of  chief  falls  on  him  who  takes  it. 

The  poiver  and  importance  of  the  chief  in  Congoland  varies 
considerably.  Among  the  Pygmies  it  may  only  extend  at  most 
over  a cluster  of  camps  or  villages,  and  be  due  to  an  individual’s 
special  wisdom,  bravery,  or  skill  in  hunting.  The  Forest  or 
river-dwelling  negroes  of  the  centre  (Bayanzi-Babangi,  Mongo, 
Ngombe,  Bangala,  Bapoto;  Lokele,  Turumbu,  Bakumu;  Basoko, 


700  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Buja,  Ababua,1  Mongwandi,  Sango,  and  Banza)  severally  recog- 
nize no  supreme  chief,  ruling  over  thousands  of  people  and 
hundreds  of  square  miles  : each  little  community  amongst  them 
has  its  own  ruler,  who  at  most  is  one  of  many  delegates  in 
a council  which  may  represent  national  unity  of  language. 

Empires,  powerful  monarchies,  or  great  chieftainships  have 
never,  so  far  as  we  know,  appeared  in  the  inner  Congo  basin 
north  of  the  Sankuru- Kasai,  west  of  the  Albertine-Tanganyika 
Rift  valley,  or  south  of  the  Mubangi-Wele.  In  the  western 
region  a Bateke  dynasty  arose  in  the  hilly  country  to  the 
north  of  Stanley  Pool.  Four  hundred  years  ago  and  perhaps 
more  there  was  a chief  with  the  hereditary  title  of  Makoko, 
whose  rule  over  the  Bateke  and  allied  tribes  apparently 
extended  from  the  southern  shores  of  Stanley  Pool  northwards 
to  the  Ogowe  watershed,  and  who  was  sufficiently  powerful 
at  that  period  for  a rumour  of  his  existence  to  penetrate  to 
the  Portuguese  and  Italian  geographers  and  chroniclers  of  the 
Congo.  Like  almost  all  tribes  in  this  portion  of  Bantu  Africa, 
the  so-called  Bateke  came  up  from  a southerly  direction,  and 
were  connected  in  language  and  possibly  origin  with  most  of 
the  existing  peoples  of  the  Kwilu  and  lower  Kasai.  Whence 
they  obtained  that  spark  of  civilization  and  power  which 
enabled  them  to  found  a tolerably  permanent  kingdom  in  what 
is  now  French  Congo  is  not  very  evident.2  The  history  of 
the  Kongo  kingdom  of  San  Salvador  has  already  been  told. 
The  Kongo  people  are  obviously  related  in  origin  to  the 
ancient  Bantu  Lunda-Luba  races  of  the  southern  part  of  the 
Congo  basin,  and  the  fillip  of  improved  culture  which  was 
the  cause  of  this  powerful  kingdom  coming  into  existence 
undoubtedly  reached  them  by  way  of  the  middle  Kwango 
River,  and  was  an  ultimate  reflection  of  the  southern  Bantu 
civilization  derived  in  the  most  circuitous  way  from  East  and 
North-East  Africa. 

The  Kongo  impulse  was  the  parent  of  the  similar  and 
allied  kingdoms  and  principalities  north  of  the  Congo  estuary. 

1 The  power  of  the  Ababua  or  Babati  chiefs  is  purely  nominal,  their  principal  duty 
consisting  of  presiding  in  the  court  of  justice,  where  they  are  advised  by  the  elders. 

The  father  is  absolute  head  of  the  family,  but  he  cannot  sell  his  daughters  other- 
wise than  in  marriage.  This  right,  as  well  as  the  chieftainship  and  other  property, 
descends  in  the  direct  male  line.  Adoption  exists,  and  no  difference  is  made  between 
adopted  and  natural  children  in  delegation  of  the  chieftainship. 

2 Perhaps  the  power  of  the  Bateke  chiefs  may  have  been  founded  by  negro 
adventurers  from  the  north,  from  the  Fan  we  or  Baya  countries.  From  the  possession 
of  lion  skins,  both  actually  and  historically,  on  the  part  of  the  Bateke  chiefs,  it  is 
possible  that  this  was  the  case,  and  that  these  Bantu  people  of  southern  origin  had 
got  into  touch  with  the  northern  negroids  of  the  open  country,  behind  and  beyond  the 
forests  of  the  Cameroons  and  the  Sanga  basin. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  701 


There  were  patches  of  sheer  forest  barbarism,  Pygmy  life, 
along  the  coast-lands  of  the  Ogowe 
and  Gaboon  and  of  mucn  of  the 
Cameroons ; yet  even  here  there 
were  extraneous  influences  powerful 
enough  to  create  kingdoms  and  chief- 
tainships. The  fact  is  that  an  ancient 
civilization  starting  with  the  intrusion 
of  the  Caucasian  element  into  Sene- 
gambia  at  a very  ancient  date  (and 
reinforced  by  vague  influences  of  the 
classical  and  Egyptian  worlds  that 
reached  Nigeria  and  the  Gold  Coast 
before  the  invasion  of  Islam)  must 
have  crept  eastwards  and  southwards 
along  the  coast  region  of  West 
Africa,  following  an  almost  exactly 
opposite  course  to  the  advance  of  the 
North-West  Bantu  tongues  and  the 
Southern  Bantu  civilization.  This 
ancient  shore  culture  of  West  Africa 
penetrated  along  the  line  of  least 
resistance — the  more  or  less  open 
sea-coast — and  may  not  have  been 
completely  exhausted  until  it  reached 
the  deserts  of  the  Hottentot  and 
Bushman.  But  like  the  later  Bantu 
civilization,  it  was  scared  by  the  great 
forests,  and  therefore  the  main  cul- 
ture of  Congoland,  the  arts,  the  in- 
dustries, and  the  idea  of  grouping 
clans  into  tribes  and  tribes  into 
nations  presided  over  by  a supreme 
chief  derived  its  origin  almost  en- 
tirely  from  the  north-east , from  the 
Caucasian  influence  originating  in 
the  Nile  valley,  and  entering  the 
Congo  basin  all  along  the  line  of  the 
Mubangi,  on  the  one  hand  ; creeping 
southwards  past  the  end  of  Tangan- 
yika, on  the  other. 

There  are  powerful  sultanates 
at  the  present  day  in  the  northern 
territories  of  the  Congo,  but  some 


373.  THE  OFFICIAL  STAFF  OF 
THE  CHIEF  OF  BULU  ON  THE 
LUALABA-CONGO  (CAPTAIN  S. 
L.  HINDE) 

of  them  are  of  the  most 


702  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


recent  origin,  dating  back  scarcely  further  than  the  last 
quarter  of  the  nineteenth  century,  and  due,  of  course,  to 
the  introduction  of  guns  by  the  slave-trading  Sudanese  and 
the  infection  of  the  neo-roes  or  negroids  with  Muhammadan 

ideas.  Of  such  are  the 
Nsakara  and  Nyam- 
nyam  chiefs,  sultans,  or 


kings 


374.  THE  “ LINGUISTEIRO  ” OR  SPOKESMAN 
A LOWER  CONGO  CHIEF 
(Sketched  by  Sir  H.  Johnston  in  1882.) 


The  Mahbettu 
monarchy  (nowadays 
split  up  into  principali- 
ties) is  of  a much  older 
and  more  interesting 
character.  It  probably 
had  a similar  origin  to 
the  kingdoms  and  em- 
pires  of  Uganda  and 
Unyoro  ; that  is  to  say, 
it  may  have  been 
founded  several  hun- 
dred years  ago  by  some 
Hamitic  adventurer  or 
adventurers  from  the 
Nile  regions. 

Over  the  rest  of 
Con  go  land  we  no- 
where  discern  the  mak- 
ings of  a great  state  or 
the  existence  of  a 
powerful  chieftainship, 
till,  travelling  from  the 
north,  we  reach  the 
Sankuru  River,  which 
together  with  the  lower 
Kasai  makes  an  almost 
horizontal  barrier 
of  athwart  the  central 
Congo  basin.  Here  we 
find  established  the  Ba- 
undoubtedly  to  the  Hima  of 
The  Lukengu  chieftainship  of  the 
Sankuru  and  Lulua,  seems  to  have 
well-established  state,  and  much  the 


origin 

o 


kuba  caste,  akin  in 
Uganda  and  Unyoro. 

Bakuba,  between  the 
been  a powerful  and 
same  influence  obviously  created  the  Luba  and  Rua  chieftain- 
ships, all  of  which  were  sufficiently  powerful  from  the  days  of 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  703 

Cameron  to  the  present  time  both  to  facilitate  the  transit  of 
South-Central  Africa  for  the  European  explorer  and,  on  the 
other  hand,  to  check  schemes  of  European  or  Arab  conquest. 
The  germ  of  northern  culture  introduced  by  the  Bakuba  and 
Baluba  created  the  vast  Lunda  empire , the  chiefs  of  which,  the 
various  Ata-yanvua  (to  give  perhaps  the  correct  spelling  of 
the  plural  of  Mwata-yanvua),  at  one  time — say  a hundred  and 
fifty  years  ago — extended  their  sway  from  the  Kwango  River 
on  the  far  west  to  Lake  Mweru  on  the  far  east.  Lunda 


375.  A PROFESSIONAL  DANCING  WOMAN  COMMENCING  HER  PERFORMANCE 
(BOPOTO,  NORTHERN  CONGO) 

adventurers,  again,  created  powerful  chieftainships  amongst  the 
southern  Angola  tribe  of  Kioko,  the  Imbangala  (the  Jaggas  of 
Portuguese  historians),  the  Ba-achinji  and  Baholo  (the  Mwene 
Puto  Kasongo),  and  lastly,  the  Muri  Kongo  and  Bayaka. 

The  same  influence  again  built  up  chieftainships  (started 
by  bold  adventurers)  amongst  the  forest  tribes  between  the 
Lukenye  and  the  Kasai- Sankuru. 

In  all  these  regions  of  the  southern  half  of  the  Congo 
basin  the  supreme  chief  or  monarch  gradually  became  erected 
into  the  position  of  a quasi-sacred  tyrant. 

Even  amongst  the  Bakwese  people  of  the  upper  Kwilu  at 


704  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  present  day  the  chief  or  chiefs  are  semi-sacred.  They  may 
not  be  seen  eating  by  the  common  people.  They  are  served 
with  food  by  elders  in  their  huts.  Throughout  all  South-Central 
Congoland  a chief  never  sits  on  the  ground,  but  on  a chair  or 
stool  cut  out  of  wood,  with  its  base  carved  very  often  to  repre- 
sent a hippopotamus,  an  elephant,  a buffalo,  or  some  kind  of 
antelope.  These  mysteries  connected  with  the  eating  or  drink- 
ing of  the  chief  appear  to  have  spread  even  to  the  Bayanzi  of 
the  western  Congo.  A description  is  given  in  the  present 
writer’s  work,  written  twenty-five  years  ago  ( The  River  Congo , 


376.  A FUNERAL  DANCE,  NORTHERN  CONGO 


p.  235),  of  the  ceremonies  attending  the  drinking  of  palm  wine 
on  the  part  of  Ibaka,  the  principal  chief  of  Bolobo.  (As  a 
matter  of  fact,  Grenfell  states  that  Ibaka  was  an  ex-slave  and 
an  adventurer  who  really  came  from  the  lower  part  of  the 
Alima  River,  and  was  probably  of  Bateke  origin.  Most  of  the 
other  Bolobo  chiefs  came  from  the  east.) 

In  the  regions  just  described  there  is  a marked  hierarchy  in 
native  society,  and  a considerable  range  of  happiness  or  misery, 
wealth  and  poverty.  But  through  the  greater  part  of  the 
Congo  basin  amongst  forest  and  riverain  tribes  social  life  is 
remarkably  uniform.  There  are,  of  course,  the  slaves,  though 


11. — p 


377.  A FUNERAL  DANCE  AMONGST  THE  BABANGI 


UNIVf>  ILLINOIS 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  707 

some  river  and  forest  people,  like  the  Bagenya,  keep  no  slaves  ; 
but  where  these  are  not — or  were  not — killed  and  eaten,  they 
led  much  the  same  lives  as  the  freemen  and  chiefs. 

Besides  warfare — offensive  or  defensive — hunting,  fishing, 
agriculture  (mainly  carried  on  by  women),  and  the  simple  arts 
and  industries  practised  by  almost  all  tribes  except  the  Pygmies, 
native  life  was  filled  up  with  the  terrors  and  excitements  atten- 
dant on  a belief  in  sorcery,  by  music  and  dancing — of  which  all, 
including  the  Pygmies,  are  passionately  fond— by  love-making, 
licit  and  illicit — and  by  games . 

These  last,  very  naturally,  occupied  the  time  of  the  children 


378.  MASKED  DANCERS,  ZOMBO  PLATEAU 


more  than  that  of  the  adults,  who  had  little  time  to  waste  on 
unproductive  sports  except  in  the  more  civilized  regions  of  the 
western  Congo,  where  some  better  development  of  agriculture, 
some  greater  degree  of  security  from  wild  beasts  or  from  inter- 
necine warfare  enabled  adults  as  well  as  children  to  give  up  a 
portion  of  their  leisure  to  mere  fun  and  gratuitous  physical 
exercise. 

Playing-cards  seem  to  have  been  introduced  by  the  Portu- 
guese into  the  western  Congo  as  far  back  as  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, and  to  have  penetrated  into  the  Lunda  and  Luba  countries 
at  least  a hundred  years  ago.  The  natives  of  all  Southern  Con- 
ooland  and  of  the  western  Con^o  are  oreat  gamblers.  Some 
of  the  tribes  of  the  Kwilu- Kasai  basin  play  with  a rude  form  of 
dice.  It  is  well  known  that  for  two  hundred  years  at  least 


708  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

c-amblingf  in  all  this  region  has  often  been  an  assistance  to  the 
slave  trade,  for  after  pledging  wives  and  children  a man  would 
finally  pledge  and  perhaps  lose  himself. 

A full  list  of  western  Congo  games  is  given  by  Dr.  Holman 
Bentley  in  his  Dictionary  and  Grammar  of  the  Kongo  Language. 
The  list  refers  more  especially  to  the  Kongo  kingdom,  and 
includes  such  world-wide  sports  as  dumb-crambo  and  riddles, 
hockey,  “odds  and  evens,”  and  many  games  connected  with 
throwing  hoops,  hiding  objects,  charades,  etc. 

The  following  detailed  description  of  games  in  vogue  among 
the  Babangi  (Bayanzi)  of  the  western  Upper  Congo  is  taken 


379.  A TOM-TOM  FROM  THE  BALOVALE  PEOPLE  AT  THE  SOUTH-WESTERNMOST 
CORNER  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN,  NEAR  THE  SOURCES  OF  THE  ZAMBEZI  (FORMERLY 
USED  BY  THE  CHIEF  KAKENGE  TO  SUMMON  HIS  SUBJECTS) 


from  the  Rev.  John  Whitehead’s  Grammar  and  Dictionary  of 
the  Bobangi  Language , with  some  additional  notes  of  my  own  : — 

“ Ngenza  is  a game  in  which  midribs  of  plantain  are  used.  They 
are  cut  into  pieces  about  six  inches  or  so  long,  and  each  player  takes  a 
number  of  such  pieces  as  can  be  equally  divided  among  the  players. 
Then  hairpins  or  splinters  of  the  midribs  of  palms  are  taken  between 
the  fingers  of  the  open  hand,  usually  by  putting  the  second  finger  on 
one  side  of  them  and  all  the  other  fingers  on  the  other.  The  pieces  of 
plantain  stalk  are  arranged  close  together  one  behind  the  other,  then 
an  opponent  throws  his  hairpin  or  splinter  and  tries  to  pin  as  many  as 
possible  at  the  same  time,  the  hairpin  or  splinter  is  left  in  the  stalks,  and 
the  owner  of  the  stalks  takes  aim  with  his  hairpin  and  tries  to  pierce  as 
many  as  his  opponent,  and  if  he  does  so  he  is  said  to  free  his  stalks  and 
takes  his  turn  in  trying  to  pin  his  opponent’s  stalks  ; if  he  do  not 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  709 


succeed  in  pinning  those  which  his  opponent  pinned  he  loses  the  piece 
or  pieces  which  were  pinned  and  another  opponent  takes  his  turn  at  the 
remainder ; if  all  are  lost  in  this  way,  the  late  owner  of  them  is  bidden 
to  ‘ go  to  the  forest/  The  winner  of  most  pieces  of  plantain  stalk  is 
called  the  ‘ chief/ 

“ Ngila  is  another  game.  There  are  two  varieties,  one  played 
with  the  arms — ?igil'e 
maboko , and  the 
other  with  the  legs 
— ngil'e  makolo , but 
the  rules  are  similar, 
and  the  one  with  the 
arms  is  most  common 
with  Bobangi  folk. 

There  are  two  sides 
— mboto  and  eseke. 

One  member  of  mboto 
holds  up  both  hands, 
and  a member  of  eseke 
does  the  same,  then 
simultaneously  they 
each  clap  their  hands 
or  smite  their  muscles, 
and  the  mboto  man 
throws  out  one  or 
other  arm  as  he 
chooses,  the  clapping 
being  repeated  as 
often  as  the  mboto 
man  chooses  before 
throwing  out  the  arm. 

The  eseke  man  must 
answer  immediately 
with  the  correspond- 
ing arm,  if  he  does 
not  do  so  he  loses, 
and  his  loss  is  called 
ndongo.  If  he  answer 
with  the  correspond- 
ing arm  he  wins,  and  380.  THE  drums  of  the  bayanzi  (bolobo) 

the  win  is  called 

mpela.  Twelve  mpela  make  a chief,  and  whenever  a player  becomes  a 
chief  he  leaves  the  game  to  the  others. 

“ Bonzo  is  the  Bangi  or  Yanzi  form  of  the  Swahili  bao — a kind  of 
draught-board,  in  which  two  rows  of  parallel  holes  are  scooped,  the 
counters  being  pins  or  kauris. 

“ Bwembo  is  a child’s  game  of  keeping  house. 

“ Ebebe  is  a kind  of  game  in  which  the  players  are  all  seated  except 
one,  who  stands  in  the  centre  of  the  ring  formed  by  those  who  are  sit- 
ting down.  One  or  more  rises  from  their  sitting  posture,  and  the  one  in 
the  centre  of  the  ring  makes  a rush  to  touch  with  his  hand  one  of  those 


7io  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


who  have  risen  ; if  he  succeed  in  doing  so  the  one  touched  is  said  to  be 
left  with  ebebe,  and  takes  his  turn  in  the  centre  of  the  ring. 

“ In  Ebenga  a piece  of  plantain  root  is  hurled  along  the  ground,  and 
as  it  goes  along  assegais  are  thrown  at  it,  and  eventually  the  players 
stand  at  a distance  from  the  place  where  it  rests  and  take  aim  at  it,  and 

if  it  is  not  ‘ wounded  * 
it  is  again  hurled 
along  the  ground  and 
the  play  resumed. 

“ Esenzako , mean- 
ing lot,  is  sometimes 
taken  by  holding  a 
number  of  reeds  (one 
of  which  is  tied  in  the 
centre)  in  the  hand, 
and  each  being  drawn 
by  each  person  in- 
terested until  the 
knotted  one  is  taken. 
Esenzako  may  mean  a 
test  of  innocence,  one 
method  of  which  is 
to  cause  the  person 
charged  with  wrong- 
doing, or  his  proxy, 
to  hold  a bush  while  it 
is  invoked  by  another 
person,  who  com- 
mences his  invocation 
by  the  syllable  ba  and 
closes  it  with  the  syl- 
lable za . If  the  bush 
shakes,  the  man 
charged  is  guilty. 
Sometimes  the  test  is 
more  severe,  and  is 
applied  by  fire,  when  a 
limb  of  the  supposed 
culprit  is  put  in  the 
fire,  and  if  it  does  not 
burn  the  person  is  de- 

381.  a friction-drum  from  the  south  bambala  clared  innocent.  This 
country  (s.w.  congoland)  is  also  the  name  of  a 

game  of  lots  as  pre- 
viously stated,  but  a person  is  invited  to  draw  the  reeds  forth  one  by 
one,  and  if  he  draw  the  knotted  one  before  any  of  the  rest  he  is  declared 
a witch,  but  if  it  be  left  until  the  last  he  is  acquitted. 

“ The  game  of  lobesi  is  usually  associated  with  gambling.  Six 
counters  ( mbesi ) are  used  by  each  person  playing.  One  side  of  the 
counter  is  light  ( nkei ) and  the  other  dark  (mpili).  Two  throws  are 
allowed.  The  stakes  ( ndongo ) are  taken  when  in  both  throws  either 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  71 1 

the  counters  fall  dark  sides  up  ( mpili ) or  light  sides  up  (nkei)  or  three  of 
each  colour  up  (miso  masato).  The  person  putting  down  the  stakes  is 
called  mobeti  o ndongo , and  such  stakes  when  taken  are  called  mizaki. 
The  circle  of  players  is  called  ngala.  The  second  throw  of  the  counters 
is  called  bopuli.  The  clap  which  follows  the  throw  is  described  by  the 
verbs  koba  and  sele. 

“ Hide-and-seek  they  call  mabonda , and  cat’s  cradle  inisondeke.  In 
the  game  of  mokale-mokale  one  person  is  sent  away  into  hiding,  and  in 
his  absence  one  member  of  the  company  curses  him,  and  the  person  is 
called  out  of  hiding  by  the  whole  company  together  greeting  him  with 
the  cry  mokale-mokale , and  it  is  for  the  person  called  to  find  out  by 
guessing  who  cursed  him,  and  if  he  find  out  the  curser  takes  his  place, 


382.  NATURAL  AND  ARTIFICIAL  RATTLES  FROM  CENTRAL  CONGO  BASIN  : (i)  IS 
THE  SECTION  OF  A SEED-POD  OF  AN  ALBIZZIA  TREE.  (2)  AND  (2)  ARE  RATTLES 
MADE  FROM  SPLIT  CANES 

but  if  not  he  returns  into  hiding  to  be  called  again  to  find  out  the  new 
person  who  has  cursed  him. 

“ Monkuku  is  a game  in  which  one  bids  his  fellows  laugh,  and  they 
cease  laughing  and  become  quite  grave.  He  then  dances  about  and 
pokes  fun  at  them  until  he  forces  one  of  them  to  laugh.  This  one  then 
takes  his  turn  until  he  makes  another  player  laugh.  When  the  game  is 
concluded  they  sing  a teasing  song  to  one  of  their  number  who  could 
not  make  his  fellows  laugh. 

“ The  children’s  game  of  mwese-mwese  is  played  in  the  water  when 
the  clouds  rush  along  the  sky  hiding  the  sun  at  intervals.  They  style 
themselves  ‘the  children  of  the  leopard/  and  cry  for  the  sun  until  it 
appears  again,  when  they  resume  their  play  until  the  sun  is  hidden  again. 

“ Ntsoko  li  bobinsa  is  a game  in  which  ntsoko  (seeds)  are  pierced 
and  a splinter  pushed  through  them  so  as  to  form  teetotums.  A place 


-i2  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


is  arranged  by  means  of  a plantain  leaf,  and  then  the  players 
make  their  teetotums  spin  by  rubbing  the  upper  part  of  the  splinter 
in  their  hands  and  letting  go.  Each  aims  at  knocking  over  his 

opponent’s  teeto- 
tums. 

“ Ntsu-ntsu  is 
a game  in  which 
two  sides  are 
formed.  Each  side 
chooses  the  name 
of  a fish,  and  one 
member  takes  a 
handful  of  palm 
kernels  and 
throws  them  be- 
fore him  one  by 
one  while  he  re- 
peats the  names 

of  fishes.  When  he  names  the  name  of  the  fish  chosen  the  kernel 
which  is  then  thrown  by  him  is  closely  watched  by  those  who  chose 
the  fish.  Then 
on  each  side  is 
chosen  a mokati 
and  a molungoli. 

The  molungoli 
turns  his  head 
while  the  mokati 
puts  his  finger  on 
the  kernel,  ac- 
knowledged to  be 
the  one  thrown  at 
the  time  the  fish 
was  mentioned. 

This  done,  the 
molungoli  turns 
his  head,  and  tries 
to  select  the  one 
on  which  the  mo- 
kati put  his  finger. 

The  side  which 
obtains  most  ker- 
nels wins. 

“In  the  game 
of  nteti  a seed  of 
this  name  is  held 

between  the  third  3^4-  another  type  of  xylophone,  back  view,  showing 

...  ^ SEPARATE  RESONATORS  PROBABLY  MADE  FROM  VERY 

and  fourth  fingers,  LARGE  seed  pods 
and  at  the  same 

time  a handful  of  dust  is  taken  up  and  witlTthe  seed  thrown  forward.  It 
the  seed  be  not  hidden  by  the  dust  there  is  a scrimmage  for  the  seed.  If 
the  seed  be  hidden  by  the  dust,  the  opponent  of  the  one  who  throws 


383.  A XYLOPHONE  FROM  THE  BANGALA  COUNTRY,  NORTHERN 
CONGO  : UPPER  SURFACE,  WITH  CONTINUOUS  RESONATOR 
BEHIND 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  713 


measures  a distance  by  means  of  the  outstretched  fingers.  The  fingers 
are  placed  down  wherever  the  player  selects,  and  the  distance  taken  is 
between  the  tips  of  the  thumb  and  second  finger.  If  the  seed  is  found 
between  the  tips  of  these  fingers,  the  one  who  has  measured  his  distance 
must  now  throw  the  seed  with  the  dust.  If  found  outside  the  limits  of 
these  tips,  the  measurer  must  either  hand  over  himself  or  one  of  his 
side  to  the  other  as  slave.  This  slave 
waits  a chance  to  seize  a seed  in  a 
scrimmage,  when  he  becomes  free  again. 

The  side  that  gets  the  most  slaves  wins, 
and  the  leader  is  styled  mokonzi .” 

A good  general  description  of 
the  dances  of  the  Congo  peoples 
is  ofiven  in  the  volume  on  Native 

o 

Music  issued  by  the  Congo  Mu- 
seum at  Tervueren  in  1902.1  I 
will  venture  to  supplement  it  with 
further  particulars,  derived  chiefly 
from  the  writings  of  the  Baptist 
missionaries  [Whitehead,  Grenfell, 
and  Bentley],  and  the  works  of  the 
Belgian  and  American  mission- 
aries in  Eastern  and  South-Central 
Congoland,  together  with  some 
notes  of  my  own. 

Dancing  without  sinofinor  in 

• • o # o 

negro  Africa  is  almost  an  impos- 
sibility : solo  songs  or  chants  in 
chorus,  rhythmic  shrieks,  shouts, 
grunts  accompany  the  agitation  of 
the  body  and  limbs  ; together  with 
clapping  of  the  hands,  stamping 
with  the  whole  foot,  or  kicking 
with  the  heels.  The  Pygmies 
dance  with  the  whole  body,  es- 
pecially when  they  are  seated — 
wagging  the  head,  lifting  the  el- 
bows, swaying  their  thighs,  drumming  on  the  ground  with  toes 
or  heels,  and  making  the  muscles  of  the  stomach  quiver  and 
seemingly  gyrate.  Their  dancing  when  erect  also  brings  into 
play  most  movable  parts  of  the  body.  They  dance  generally 
in  a round,  or  in  Indian  file,  and  some  of  their  movements  and 
gestures  are  dramatic,  ridiculous,  or  grotesquely  obscene.  But 

1 Notes  Analytiques  sur  les  Collections  Ethnographiques  du  Musee  du  Congo, 
1902. 


385.  A GONG  OF  IRON  FROM  THE 
BALUBA  PEOPLE,  SOUTH-CEN- 
TRAL CONGOLAND  (TORDAY  COL- 
LECTION) 


7i4  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

(as  I have  written  elsewhere)  the  immodesty  in  the  Pygmy 
dances  appears  to  be  purely  perfunctory,  and  merely  intended 
as  some  kind  of  symbolic  ritual.  Their  dances  also  simulate 
hunting  [as  well  as  love-making],  or  the  conventional  attitudes 
of  the  beasts  they  pursue  in  their  search  for  food. 

The  dances  of  the  taller  negroes  of  Congoland  may  be  divided 
into  these  categories:  (i)  war  dances  for 
men  only  (or  the  women  merely  assisting 
as  a stationary  chorus)  ; (2)  dances  of  a 
more  or  less  mysterious  character  for 
women  only,  and  connected  no  doubt 
with  sexual  phenomena ; (3)  dances  of 
solitary  performers,  either  male  or  female 
(with  a chorus  and  “a  full  band”),  usually 
associated  with  religion,  witchcraft,  or 
medicine;  (4)  funeral  dances  wherein  men 
and  women  dance  simultaneously,  but 
usually  in  separate  bands. 

War  dances  (the  mi-teba  of  western 
Tanganyika  and  ngwana  among  the  Ba- 
bangi)  depart  ordinarily  from  the  idea  of 
rhythm,  and  are  frequently  developed  into 
sham  fights.  The  performers  are  generally 
more  or  less  grotesquely  attired,  and  are 
armed  with  weapons  old  and  new.  I 
cannot  find  any  record  of  solo  sword 
dances  such  as  I have  seen  amongst  the 
Mandingoes  in  West  Africa  or  amongst 
the  Sudanese.  These  are  probably  of 
Arab  or  Mediterranean  origin,  and  have 
not  yet  penetrated  to  the  Congo. 

The  dances  which  the  women  per- 
form alone  are  usually  associated  with 
the  proclamation  of  the  first  signs  of 
puberty  in  young  girls,  or  the  birth  of 
children,  or  they  may  also  have  some 
relationship  to  the  invocation  of  fertility 
A special  puberty  dance  in  the  western 
Tanganyika  basin  is  called  Kisungu,  which  is  equivalent  to 
the  word  for  hymen,  or  to  a term  indicating  the  first 
menses.  These  dances,  peculiar  to  the  women  amongst  the 
Babangi  and  Bayanzi,  are  known  as  Eyenio,  Longwango,  Mpo , 
and  Ngamandele . 

Dances  of  solitary  performers  may  be  those  already  described 


386.  A WOODEN  FLUTE 
FROM  THE  MONGWANDI 
COUNTRY  (UPPER  MON- 
GALA RIVER) 

Probably  made  in  rough  imitation 
of  human  thigh  bone. 

on  the  plantations. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  715 


on  the  part  of  medicine-men  when  they  wish  to  drive  away 
spirits  and  the  maladies  caused  by  them. 

Or  wise  men  or  wise  women  may  dance 
themselves  into  a kind  of  frenzy  and 
trance,  in  which  they  are  supposed  to  be 
able  to  reveal  the  names  of  suspected 
witches  or  criminals  or  other  important 
evidence.  But,  more  especially  along  the 
Upper  Congo,  dancing  may  be  adopted 
as  a profession  without  malign  associa- 
tions. This  is  usually  the  case  with 
women  of  a certain  age  and  no  moral  3 87-  a whistle  or  flute 

1 111  • OF  WOOD  FROM  THE 

character,  who  develop  a reputation  as  kasai 
eccentric  dancers  — eccentric  certainly, 

even  according  to  Congo  ideas,  as  regards  their  dress,  adorn- 

o o 1 o 

ments,  and  decoration.  Their  talent 
for  dancing  is  supposed  to  be 
equalled  by  their  skill  as  singers, 
and  they  accompany  most  of  their 
body  movements  by  a recitative, 
by  shrieks  and  trills.  The  “Mpo” 
women’s  dance  of  the  Babangi  and 
of  all  Central  Congoland  is  often 
termed  the  “shrieking  dance,”  from 
the  hideous  yells  with  which  the 
women  work  themselves  into  a 
choregraphic  frenzy. 

Most  of  the  dances  not  asso- 
ciated with  war,  with  women’s  rites, 
sorcery  or  medicine,  are  conducted 
by  both  sexes  simultaneously,  and 
may  be  held  from  mere  gaiety  de 
cozitr  (generally  during  the  nights  in 
which  there  is  a bright  moon),  in 
celebration  of  victories,  of  the 
gathering  in  of  the  crops,  the  sow- 
ing of  the  grain,  of  a marriage,  or 
the  clearing  up  of  a funeral.  At 
these  general  dances  there  are  move- 
ments, generally  in  Indian  file,  on 
388.  pan-pipes  of  the  bangongo  the  part  of  the  whole  chorus  of  per- 

PEOPLE,  SOUTH-CENTRAL  CONGO-  r • r ^ 

land  formers,  and  individual  manifesta- 

tions of  skill  or  of  what  is  taken  for 
grace.  Some  of  the  solitary  performers  will  whirl  round  and 


716  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

round  on  their  toes  till  they  fall  into  a giddy  swoon  ; men  will 
leap  frantically  into  the  air  as  high  as  they  can  jump.  Although 
men  and  women  constantly  “set  to  partners,”  I have  no  record 
of,  and  I never  personally  observed,  their  dancing  together  in 
anything  like  a European  waltz  or  round  dance.  Even  during 
the  indecent  dances — real  or  supposed — they  very  seldom 
come  into  actual  contact.  The  members  of  the  chorus  may 
link  arms  or  place  hands  on  each  other’s  shoulders,  but  the  two 
parties  that  dance  a duo  generally  do  so  more  in  the  style  of 
the  old  minuet. 

In  the  Kongo  countries  the  natives  seem  to  be — according  to 
Bentley — particularly  addicted  to  the  danse  de  ventre , and  this 
is  the  case  also  amongst  the  Babangi.  The  shoulders,  buttocks, 


389.  A MUSICAL  BOW  FROM  THE  KASAI  (TOP  FIGURE)  ; ANOTHER  TYPE  OF  MUSICAL 
BOW  FROM  THE  CENTRAL  ARUWIMI,  WITH  TWO  STRINGS  AND  PEGS 

stomach,  and  breasts  are  all  separately  or  simultaneously  rotated, 
wagged,  or  otherwise  set  in  movement,  and  the  result  on  the 
part  of  a very  finished  performer  comes  near  to  being  disgust- 
ing. But  I have  never  in  this,  nor  in  any  other  dance  of  purely 
negro  origin,  seen  actual  indecencies  in  East,  West,  or  Central 
Africa.  Some  of  the  dancing  undoubtedly  had  a meaning 
which  one  could  only  ascribe  to  a somewhat  stereotyped  panto- 
mime referring  to  the  union  of  the  sexes  ; but  the  representa- 
tion was  so  very  perfunctory,  and  was  so  entirely  unaccompanied 
by  anything  savouring  of  lasciviousness  in  the  performers,  that 
I can  only  imagine  either  that  the  presence  of  a European  may 
have  had  a sobering  effect,  or  that  Congo  negroes  preserve  in 
their  dances,  as  in  most  other  public  aspects  of  their  lives,  a 
certain  degree  of  decorum,  not  always  observed  by  either 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  717 


Europeans  or  Asiatics.1  One  or  two  travellers  who  have  written 
on  this  subject  in  earlier  days  give  one  the  impression  of  having 
been  in  search  of  indecencies,  or  even  of  having  “ commande 
que  ion  ne  se  retienne  pas”;  and  no  doubt  their  expectations 
were  duly  gratified. 

At  the  same  time,  Torday  refers  to  the  grossly  indecent 
songs  sung*  by  some  of  the  Bambalci  and  Bahuana  at  their 
dances,  and  his 
evidence  is  fully 
supported  by  that 
of  the  Belgian  mis- 
sionaries who  have 
written  on  lan- 
guage or  ethnology 
in  the  Ltiba  coun- 
tries. The  badin- 
age exchanged  be- 
tween  men  and 
women  on  these 
and  similar  occa- 
sions, as  set  forth 
in  Latin  as  well 
as  in  the  native 
equivalent,  in  the 
Rev.  Father  Van 
Acker’s  Dictionary 
of  Kitabwa , shows 
that  the  people  of 
west  Tanganyika, 
at  any  rate,  are  not 
likely  to  be  shocked 
by  anything  they 
may  hear  from  de- 
praved Europeans. 

The  names,  moreover,  of  some  of  the  favourite  dances  in  the  re- 
gion of  western  Tanganyika  are  sufficiently  suggestive,  since  one 
of  them — Bukambwe — means  adultery,  and  another  is  specially 
associated  with  the  orgies  and  what  are  described  as  “unnam- 
able  vices  ” of  the  Butwa  secret  society.  Similar  dances  con- 
nected with  a similar  institution  occur  in  the  adjacent  territory 
of  the  Baluba — the  dances  of  the  Bnkabo.  Torday,  Grenfell,  and 


390.  A METALLOPHONE  FROM  THE  BALUA  COUNTRY, 
S.W.  CONGOLAND  (TORDAY  COLLECTION) 


1 Africa  between  the  Zambezi  and  the  northernmost  limits  of  the  negro’s  domain 
is  freer  from  any  public  spectacle  or  behaviour  (on  the  part  of  the  indigenes)  which  is 
likely  to  shock  a normal  sense  of  decency  than  most  parts  of  Europe  and  Asia. 


7 1 8 GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


other  authorities  state  that  married  women  are  not  allowed  to 
take  part  in  immoral  dances,  the  female  participants  being 
nubile  girls.  Certain  Belgian  writers  claim  that  the  dances  act 
to  a certain  extent  as  a means  of  natural  selection.  The  men 
endeavour  to  attract  the  attention  of  the  women  by  feats  of 
strength,  suppleness,  and  other  physical  displays. 

It  has  been  mentioned  that  the  Congo  peoples  are  fond  of 
music.  Although  under  nearly  all  the  headings  treating  of 
different  forms  of  culture  the  Pygmies  must  be  represented  by 
a negative  quantity,  they  are  almost  more  musical  inherently 

than  the  bigger  peoples  around  them,  who 
are  far  more  advanced  in  various  stages  of 
human  civilization. 

Grenfell  has  given  a good  description  of 
Pygmy  singing  and  dancing  on  pages  331, 
332.  Though  the  melodies  they  invent  are 
sometimes  quite  charming  to  European 
ears,  and  their  sense  of  rhythm  and  tune 
is  highly  developed,  their  musical  instru- 
ments seem  to  be  limited  to  the  drum 
and  the  bow-string,  though  of  course, 
where  they  are  closely  in  touch  with 
superior  races,  they  may  borrow 
more  elaborate  instruments. 

Among  the  other  peoples  of 
the  Congo  basin  there  are 
the  following  features  to  be 
noticed  in  regard  to  the 
type  and  distribution  of 

391.  A HARP  OF  THE  ABABUA  PEOPLE,  WELE  RIVER  n^jsicdl  instruments. 

1 he  universal  and  the 

earliest  instrument  for  producing  noise  is  the  drum.  The  simplest 
type  of  this  is  the  segment  of  a tree  trunk,  the  inside  of  which  has 
been  scooped  out  through  a narrow  slit  or  through  the  larger 
end.  Even  the  chimpanzis  of  the  African  forests  appreciate 
the  resonance  of  a hollow  tree  trunk,  and  the  dawn  of  music  un- 
doubtedly is  the  thumping  of  these  hollow  logs  by  the  anthro- 
poid apes,  who  shout  and  shriek  in  chorus  to  accompany  the 
artificial  sound.  The  Congo  drum  is  of  the  following  forms  : — 

(1)  The  Tom-tom.  This  is  a hollow  block  of  thick  reso- 
nant wood,  along  one  side  of  which  a narrow  slit-opening 

1 In  these  attempts  at  describing  the  area  of  distribution  of  musical  instru- 
ments, because  a district  or  area  is  not  mentioned,  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that 
the  author  denies  the  existence  there  of  a particular  instrument.  It  would  only  mean 
that  nothing  of  the  kind  has  yet  been  recorded  from  that  direction. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  719 


remains  ; sometimes  two  slits  separated  by  a bridge.  Tapping 
with  a heavy  mallet-shaped  drumstick  across  the  slit-opening 
gives  a highly  resonant,  somewhat  melodious  noise. 

(2)  The  Drum  proper,  the  hollow  wooden  receptacle  covered 
at  the  open 

end  with  a 
stretched  skin. 

(3)  The 
Tambourine  ; 
a hoop  of  wood 
over  which  a 
skin  is  tightly 
stretched. 

[Torday,  on 
the  authority 
of  various  Bel- 
gians, states 
that  tambour- 
ines are  made 
by  the  Aru- 
wimi  and  Rubi 
river  tribes, 
north-east 
Congo.] 

(4)  The 
Friction-Drum 
( p uit  0 of 
South  - W est 
Congoland). 

In  this  instru- 
ment (shaped 
and  construc- 
ted somewhat 
like  an  ordi- 
nary drum)  the 
noise  is  pro- 
duced by  vi- 
brating a stick  passed  through  the  centre  of  the  leather  drum- 
head. So  far  the  friction-drum  has  only  been  recorded  from 
South-Central  and  South-West  Congoland,  but  it  is  also  found 
in  West  Africa,  East  and  South-Central  Africa,  and  the  Sudan 
— thence  north  to  Morocco. 

A drum  of  the  tom-tom  form  (i.e.  a hollow  wooden  re- 
ceptacle of  the  kind  illustrated)  is  used  for  that  drum  signalling 


392.  A BANGALA  HARP  FROM 
THE  NORTHERN  CONGO 


393.  A HARP  OF  THE  BAJANDE  PEOPLE,  LOWER  ARUWIMI  BASIN 


720  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


which  is — or  was — so  marked  a feature  in  the  lives  of  the 


indigenous  tribes  of  the  northern  Congo,  lower  Lomami, 
Aruwimi,  Rubi,  Mongala,  Juapa,  Lulongo,  and  Mubangi.  The 
art  penetrates  westward  to  the  Cameroons  coast,  and  is  (or 
was)  nowhere  better  developed  than  among  the  Duala  of 

the  Cameroons  estuary,  who, 
in  the  last  half  of  the  nine- 
teenth century,  possessed  a 
remarkable  system  of  sound 
signals.  These  were  made 
by  a small  tom-tom  about 
two  feet  in  length  and  nine 
inches  in  diameter. 

“Without  this  appliance” 
(writes  Mr.  George  Allan,  from 
whom  I quote)  “ no  great  man 
moved  far  away  from  his  house. 
The  drum  was  made  from  a 
solid,  four-sided  block  of  hard 
red  wood,  which  was  hollowed 
out  through  a groove  of  about 
an  inch  broad  cut  along  the  side 
selected  for  the  top.  By  the 
patient  use  of  a small  adze  the 
interior  of  the  drum  was  gradu- 
ally picked  and  chipped  away 
until  at  last  it  was  left  with 
comparatively  thin  walls.  In 
the  middle  of  the  inch-wide 
slit  was  a kind  of  bridge,  which, 
however,  was  not  continuous, 
but  perforated  by  a space  of  a 
quarter  of  an  inch  connecting 
the  two  openings  on  either  side. 
The  drum  was  beaten  with  two 
short  pieces  of  soft  wood  on  the 
bridge  or  sides  of  the  groove. 
By  tapping  with  the  drum- 
sticks on  each  side  of  the 
bridge,  four  distinct  notes  of 
a singularly  resonant  and  pene- 
trating character  were  obtained,  and  through  combinations  of  these  notes 
either  an  exhaustive  signal  or  a complete  alphabet  was  worked  out.” 


394.  A BAYANZI  GUITAR  FROM  BOLOBO 


Under  ordinary  atmospheric  conditions,  the  taps  on  this 
drum  could  be  heard  and  understood  two  miles  away  by  the 
person  to  whom  it  was  addressed,  and  who  would  reply  by 
tapping  his  own  signal  drum.  Thus,  a Duala  merchant  trading 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  721 


on  board  a ship  in  the  Cameroons  estuary  could  signal  by 
drum  to  his  house  on  shore  and  call  by  name  any  one  of 
his  slaves.  In  this  way  he  could  also  signal  that  he  wanted 
so  many  barrels  of  palm  oil  which  were  stored  at  such  and 
such  a place.  A party  of  men  going  up-river  in  canoes  could 
tap  back  on  their  drums  final  orders  to  their  comrades  on  shore 
concerning  business  to  be  transacted  in  their  absence.  On  their 


return,  when  two  miles 
distant  from  their  homes, 
they  would  begin  tapping 
to  their  wives  orders  for 
the  meal  to  be  prepared 
against  their  return. 

When  the  present 
writer  explored  the  Came- 
roons region  in  1885-7 
the  incessant  (and  rather 
melodious)  drum  language 
seemed  never  ceasing,  ex- 
cept in  quite  uninhabited 
districts,  or  perhaps  in  the 
dead  of  night.  We  also 
carried  a tom-tom  with  us 
(similar  to  the  one  de- 
scribed by  Mr.  Allan),  and 
would  reply  to  the  ques- 
tions throbbing  through 
the  air,  or  ourselves  invite 
or  convey  information. 

Grenfell  reports  the 
“drum  language”  as  ex- 
isting on  the  lower  Lo- 
mami,  the  Lulongo,  Juapa, 
and  most  of  the  affluents 
of  the  northern  Congo. 

Lord  Mountmorres  and  other  travellers  refer  to  it  with 
emphasis  as  a feature  in  native  life  on  the  western  Mu- 
bangi.  Stanley  gives  a description  of  the  drum  signalling 
on  the  northern  Congo  in  Through  the  Dark  Continent , 
and  of  that  so  prevalent  on  the  Aruwimi  in  the  first  volume 
of  In  Darkest  Africa.  The  Bakongo  possess  a tom-tom 
( nkumbi ) very  similar  in  design  to  that  of  the  Duala,  and 
this  type  of  drum  is  known  among  the  Bayanzi  as  nkole-nkole 
and  by  the  Baluba  as  lunkunvu . 

Q 


395.  A LYRE  FROM  THE  NYAMNYAM  (MA- 
KARKA)  PEOPLE  OF  THE  WELE  RIVER 


But  neither  the  Bakongo  nor 


11.- 


722  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  Baluba  seem  to  have  acquired  or  retained  the  art  of  drum 
signalling,  though  they  and  almost  all  Congo  peoples  save  the 
Pygmies  appear  to  possess  the  right  kind  of  tom-tom  for  the 
purpose.  It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  drum  signalling  (so  far) 
has  only  been  noted  across  Equatorial  West  and  Central  Africa 
in  the  area  covered  by  what  I have  styled  the  Bantu  languages 
of  the  First  Invasion  (vide  chapter  xxxi.). 

The  friction-drum  is  considered  by  Professor  Henry  Balfour 
( Journal ’,  Royal  Anthropological  Institute , 1907)  to  have  de- 
veloped in  Negro  Africa  from  the  primitive  bellows  of  their 
iron  forges,  and  from  West  Africa  to  have  penetrated  to 
tropical  America  and  perhaps  to  Europe.  A similar  and  in- 
dependent invention  (Professor  Balfour  thinks)  may  have  arisen 
in  Southern  India. 

Soon  after  man  had  developed  the  idea  of  the  hollow 
wooden  receptacle  as  a drum,  he  must  have  noticed  the  re- 
sonance of  thin  slabs  of  wood  or  still  thinner  keys  of  palm- 
rind,  and  much  later,  of  slips  of  metal.  This  idea  develops 
in  two  directions — into  xylophone  (the  kimbxnda  or  madinda , 
marimba  of  many  Bantu  countries,  the  balenje  of  the  Mandingo) 
and  another  type  of  instrument,  which  in  default  of  any  wide- 
spread native  name  or  other  term  I venture  to  call  a metallo- 
phone,  though  sometimes  the  keys  are  made  not  of  metal,  but 
of  palm-rind  or  slips  of  very  hard  wood. 

These  instruments  are  best  described  by  the  illustrations. 
The  xylophone  (provided  with  gourds  or  other  hollow  recep- 
tacles to  re-echo  the  sound)  is  present  almost  throughout 
South-Central  Congoland  over  the  area  of  the  higher  Bantu 
civilization,  and  equally  extends  across  the  extreme  north  of 
Congoland.  Obviously,  like  nearly  all  African  culture  of  the 
Neolithic  type,  it  came  from  Egypt.  From  the  Egyptian  Sudan 
at  the  present  day  its  range  extends  westwards  across  Nigeria 
to  Senegambia.  Hitherto  it  has  not  been  recorded  from  the 
innermost  and  more  backward  regions  of  the  Congo  basin, 
though  the  metallophone  is  much  more  widespread  in  that 
direction. 

As  regards  wind  instruments,  these  no  doubt  began  by  men 
blowing  into  hollow  horns  of  antelopes  or  cattle,  or  into  reeds 
and  seeds  that  were  pitted  by  the  borings  of  insects.  Thus 
came  about  the  genesis  of  the  trumpet,  whistle,  flute,  and  pan- 
pipes (ending  in  the  organ).  All  these  varieties  of  musical  in- 
struments are  represented  in  the  Congo  basin,  but  like  most 
other  elements  of  culture  are  scarcest  or  non-existent  in  the 
central  portions. 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  723 


The  Bahuana  of  the  Kwilu  River  play  their  flutes  of 
jointed  cane  with  the  nose.  The  upper  end  is  stopped  up 
partially  with  gum,  and  the  right  hand  controls  the  exit  of  the 
air  at  the  lower  end. 

The  Bayanzi  flute  ( Libio ) is  also  made  of  cane.  The  cane 
is  heated,  then  the  outer  rind  is  removed. 

The  playing  holes  for  the  fingers  are  two, 
and  are  placed  near  the  lower  end  of  the 
flute.  The  player  whistles  at  the  edge  of 
the  upper  end,  and  modulates  the  sound  with 
his  fingers  below. 

The  stringed  instruments  began,  of  course, 
with  the  twanging  of  the  bow-string  (the 
musical  bow  is  well  illustrated  in  the  present 
authors  work  on  the  Uganda  Protectorate). 

Then  one  or  more  strings  were  added  to  the 
original  bow,  and  so  arose  the  harp.  Or  the 
idea  was  conceived  of  placing  several  bows 
alongside,  and  from  this  we  get  the  fiddle, 
guitar,  zither  played  by  the  fingers,  finger- 
nails, or  by  the  friction  of  another  bow.  All 
these  types,  from  the  most  primitive  to  some 
of  the  more  elaborate,  are  represented  in  the 
Congo  basin.  But  certain  forms  of  harp  of 
peculiarly  Egyptian  type  which  are  also  pre- 
sent in  Uganda  and  parts  of  Equatorial  East 
Africa  are  (so  far  as  collections  go)  limited 
at  present  in  their  distribution  over  the 
Congo  to  the  northern,  north-eastern,  and 
north-western  regions.  The  Egyptian  type  of 
harp  has  penetrated  as  far  to  the  west  as  the 
T Fan  people  of  the  South  Cameroons  and  Ga- 
boon. In  the  eastern  part  of  the  Congo  Free 
" State  it  does  not  penetrate  southwards  beyond 
, the  north  end  of  Tanganyika. 

The  Bahuana  of  the  Kwilu  River  have  a 
poor  kind  of  five-stringed  harp  which  they 
call  gunge.  Their  harp  strings  are  made 
out  of  long  fern  fibres.  They  are  played 
with  the  two  thumbs,  and  (according  to  Torday)  are  tuned 
G,  lower  C,  lower  D,  E,  and  F. 

As  regards  the  quality  of  native  music,  the  airs  of  many 
songs  have  been  collected  by  French  and  Belgian  travellers, 
and  have  already  been  published.  Of  those  collected  by  the 


396.  A ZITHER  FROM 
THE  BAJANDE  TRIBE, 
ARUWIMI  RIVER 
(A  somewhat  similar  instru- 
ment comes  from  western 
Tanganyika.) 


724  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Baptist  missionaries  I give  one  example — a famous  Babangi  boat- 
ing song  written  down  by  the  Rev.  R.  V.  Glennie.  Mr.  Torday 
contributes  the  air  tune  of  a Bateke  chant  which  is  sometimes 
sung  in  the  Bateke  villages  of  Stanley  Pool.  Torday  believes 
that  it  is  a song  specially  associated  with  funeral  processions. 

Solo  Unison  Chorus 


1 1 “1 

i — l M 

f_zj  ~\  — i : 

rk  Lx  m 9 V ! 

i i 

zj  w ~ 

9 .J 

i 9 1 

i!  zJ  : 

2.  2 ~ w 

122 

1 wLs. J 

L * 

Solo  Unison  Chorus 


A _ J 1 S w , : __  _ . 

- 1/  | ^ j 1^  | 

1 p 

1 . 

* J 3 - 

1 1 1 

H — 

— 1 -1  J - 

- m -H 

* at  - 

—9 9 

NATIVE  BOAT-SONG  OF  THE  BABANGI  CALLED  “KUMAMBELE” 


“ A long  file  of  women,  distant  from  each  other  about  twenty  yards, 
walked  on  slowly,  the  woman  in  front  stopping  suddenly  at  the  entrance 
to  the  village.  She  turned  to  the  east  and  sang  the  song  (herewith  illus- 
trated) in  a very  guttural  voice.  The  words  as  far  as  I could  distinguish 
them  were  * Mama  pi-enzo,  mama  pi-enzo.’  Then  she  continued  on  her 
way,  and  was  succeeded  by  another  woman,  who  equally  stopped  and  sang 
the  song,  turning  to  the  east.  All  the  women  did  the  same  in  turn.”  1 


i 


Lento 


Mama  pi  - e - nzo  ! Mama  pi  - e - nzo  ! Mama  pi  - e - nzo 


iviama  pi 


A FUNERAL  CHANT  OF  THE  BATEKE 


This  long  chapter  dealing  with  a general  survey  of  the 
religions,  superstitions,  social  customs,  and  pleasures  of  the 
Congo  peoples  gives  us  the  impression — except  so  far  as  the 
Pygmies  are  concerned — of  a somewhat  sophisticated  people 
living  in  a Neolithic  culture  comparable  to  that  of  the  races  of 
Europe  prior  to  and  at  the  beginning  of  the  age  of  metals.  In 
some  respects,  no  doubt,  these  Congo  negroes  are  Palaeolithic, 
are  still  more  primitive  in  their  mode  of  life  than  were  our  own 
ancestors  when  they  began  to  use  perfected  stone  weapons. 
The  people  of  Fernando  Po,  as  I have  intimated  in  other 
chapters,  are  in  their  indigenous  culture  wholly  Palaeolithic,  and 
in  common  with  the  lowest  types  of  Pygmy  and  other  forest- 
dwellers  in  the  Congo  even  illustrate  an  age  or  a stage  in  the 
development  of  humanity  which  was  outside  the  use  of  shaped 
stones  as  implements,  and  perhaps  preceded  it : an  age  which 
may  have  been  paralleled  amongst  the  earliest  types  of  humanity 


1 Apparently  the  words  mean 
(H.  H.  J.) 


“ Mother  ! 


(there  is)  silence  in  the  house ! ” 


RELIGION:  CUSTOMS:  CEREMONIES  725 

in  eastern  tropical  Asia,  a period  in  which  the  readiest  instru- 
ments to  hand  (besides  the  unaltered  stone  or  pebble)  were  the 
reed  or  bamboo  splinter,  the  stake,  the  sharp-edged  shell,  and 
the  bone  splinter.  Yet  except  in  the  case  of  the  Pygmies, 
most  of  the  Congo  peoples  as  they  were  seen  by  Grenfell, 
Stanley,  and  the  other  early  explorers  of  Congoland  were 
sophisticated,  they  had  touched  nearly  all  the  elementary  prob- 
lems, the  joys,  sorrows,  anxieties  of  more  civilized  humanity. 
They  were  really  on  the  same  mental  plane  as  ourselves  (and  it 
is  doubtful  if  the  Pygmies  can  be  excluded  from  the  same 
category).  They  could  rapidly  appreciate  our  ideas,  which  in 
the  germ  they  shared.  Their  languages  have  in  nearly  every 
case  supplied  a native  word  for  all  the  principal  features  and 
developments  of  European  arts,  industries,  and  civilization. 
They  were  living  anything  but  a life  of  ideal  happiness,  and 
obviously  were  not  in  a state  of 
innocence.  With  the  exception  of 
certain  erotic  aberrations  which 
appear  to  be  normally  alien  to 
the  negro  mind,  but  which  have 
made  their  appearance  inde- 
pendently amongst  the  abo- 
rigines of  America,  Asia,  and 
Europe,  the  Congo  races  had  397.  a cup  from  the  kasai 
nothing  to  learn  from  the  de- 
praved but  far  better  educated  races  of  the  north  and  east. 
Missionary  and  medical  missionary  records,  and  those  of  many 
students  of  Congo  humanity — naturally  not  of  a nature  to  be 
published  here — show  that  with  the  above  exception  the  Congo 
peoples  from  childhood  to  old  age  were  quite  as  immoral  as  the 
races  of  Europe  and  Asia.  Their  bloodthirstiness  has  already 
been  sufficiently  described.  In  many  directions,  however,  they 
have  acquired  marked  physical  beauty  of  bodily  development ; 
they  are  essentially  virile,  vigorous,  and  quick  to  learn  ; they 
are  full  of  generous  instincts,  and  possess  such  a capacity  for 
whole-hearted  devotion  to  any  European  who  treats  them  well 
that  one  is  justified  in  execrating  the  many  Europeans  who  have 
treated  them  badly.  It  only  remains  that  they  should  be  taught 
properly  and  on  the  right  lines  yet  to  play  a very  great  part, 
firstly  in  the  political  future  of  Africa,  and  secondly  in  the  ulti- 
mate federation  of  the  world’s  people. 


CHAPTER  XXVI 


HOUSES 

THE  most  primitive  type  of  dwelling,  no  doubt,  must  be 
looked  for  in  the  extreme  north-east  and  south-east 
of  Congoland,  in  the  Kunde-irungo  (Kundelungu) 
Mountains  of  Katanga,  and  in  the  region  of  Lake  Mweru. 
In  Eastern  Katanga  are  the  natural  caves  inhabited  by  the 
Balomotwa  and  Basanga  people,  some  of  whom  are  thought  to 
offer  slight  evidence  of  a former  Bushman  element. 

The  Balomotwa  people  hollow  out  passages  of  considerable 
depth  into  the  mountain-side,  the  entrances  to  which,  in  the  red 
cliffs  of  Kunde-irungo  (or  Kundelungu),  look  like  tiny  gateways 
into  Egyptian  temples. 

A few  miles  from  the  source  of  the  Lualaba  rises  a cone- 
shaped  hill  about  three  hundred  feet  high,  formed  entirely  of 
magnetic  ore.  On,  or  rather  in  this  hill,  lies  a Basanga  village  : 
Kafunda  Mikopo.  Its  inhabitants  are  not  exclusively  cave- 
dwellers  ; they  possess  some  real  huts  surrounded  even  with 
a “ boma  ” (stockade) ; still  the  greater  number  dwell  in  the  deep 
fissures  which  the  mass  of  ore  reveals,  or  under  the  shelters 
formed  by  boulders  and  fragments.  This  subterranean  village 
constitutes  a fort  thrown  out  against  the  incursions  of  the 
Alunda. 

These  same  Alunda  have  some  villages  established  on  a 
similar  plan  the  other  side  of  the  Lualaba ; finally,  on  the  north 
of  Bunkeia,  on  the  banks  of  the  Dikulue  [among  the  rugged 
rocks  of  the  Manika  which  form  the  counterpart  of  the  cliffs 
of  the  Kundelungu],  the  Bena-mulnmbo  also  live  as  cave- 
dwellers. 

Paul  Le  Marinel  says  with  regard  to  these  natives,  whom  he 
calls  Bena-kabombo  : — 

“ They  are  few  in  number  and  very  wild,  live  scattered  in  caves  and 
grottoes,  which  they  only  leave  in  order  to  obtain  wood  and  to  hunt. 
They  have  no  huts  inside,  and  it  is  stated  to  be  only  within  a few  years 
that  they  have  learnt  the  art  of  cultivation,  which,  moreover,  is  confined 
to  planting  a little  maize  in  secluded  valleys  far  from  all  roads.” 

726 


HOUSES 


7^7 


Many  colonies  of  cave-dwellers  are  reported  to  exist  on 
the  'upper  Wele  at  a little  distance  from  Vankerckhoven- 
ville. 

There  are  ancient  cave-dwellings  on  the  island  of  Kilwa,  at 
the  south  end  of  Lake  Mweru.  And  numerous  rock  shelters 
or  caverns  in  the  Crystal  Mountains  of  the  cataract  Congo 
appear  to  have  been  inhabited  anciently  by  a race  using  stone 
implements. 

Perhaps  the  earliest  type  of  human  dwelling  was  the 


398.  AN  ANCIENT  ROCK-SHELTER  IN  THE  CATARACT  REGION  (THE  TOR 

AT  PALABA1.A) 

shelter  in  the  forest,  of  boughs  bent  down  and  leaves  thrown 
on  the  sloping  interlacing  withes  and  twigs.  But  as  soon  as 
Man  emerged  from  the  forest  (in  Asia,  probably)  and  conquered 
the  open  country  as  a hunter,  a carnivore,  he  must  have  sought 
out  caves  and  overhanging  rock-shelters  for  his  sleeping-place. 
As  his  intelligence  advanced  he  would  make  his  habitation  in 
the  soil,  the  sand,  the  turf,  the  friable  rock.  He  would  thus 
invent  pit-dwellings,  would  pile  stones  one  on  the  other,  would 
dig  out  an  artificial  cave  from  the  face  of  the  limestone  cliff  or 
the  marl  river  terrace.  All  these  stages  in  the  growth  of  the 


728  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

human  dwelling  of  stone  or  clay  can  be  seen  in  the  Tunisian 
Sahara  or  (less  completely)  in  the  British  Islands. 

But  the  Negros  ancestors  in  Africa — except  along  the 
sea-shore  or  in  the  great  mountains — rapidly  reverted  to 
the  forest  life,  and  constructed  their  homes  and  shelters 
out  of  branches,  palm-fronds,  leaves,  fibre,  and  grass.  Later 
they  added  puddled  clay  to  the  floor  and  sides,  split  tree 
trunks  with  wedges  and  adzed  down  the  sections  into  rough 

o o 

planks. 

The  most  primitive  type  of  hut  in  Congoland  is  that  of  the 

Pygmy.  This  is  a mere  cage 
of  boughs,  stuck  into  the 
moist  ground  at  the  thick 

end,  and  then  bent  over  in 
a flattened  semicircle  and 
pressed  into  the  soil  by  their 
tips  at  the  slender  end,  with 
other  withes  bound  round 

horizontally.  To  the  hori- 

zontal ribs  are  attached,  by 
their  stalks,  the  tile  - like 

leaves  of  marantaceous 
plants. 

This  type  of  hut — with 
grass  thatch  instead  of  leaves 
— is  really  that  of  the  Zulu 
and  Bechuana,  and  is  perhaps 
the  basis  of  the  domed  dwell- 
ing of  the  Bakuba  and  Ba- 
songo,  of  the  beehive  huts 
of  so  much  of  East  Africa, 
Nileland,  the  Shari  basin, 
houses,  developed  from  the 
roof : the  roof  and  sides  are 
of  one  piece,  though  a porch  over  the  doorway  may  be  de- 
veloped. So  also  are  the  strange  conical,  steeple-like  huts 
of  the  Aruwimi,  the  Wele-Mubangi,  and  of  Bakubaland 
(Kasai-Sankuru)  : the  sides  form  the  roof  and  the  roof  the 
sides.  But  by  degrees  the  idea  arose  of  constructing  the 
sides  separately — round  first,  and  then  rectangular,  square,  or 
oblong. 

The  roof  framework  was  next  put  together  and  hoisted 
on  to  the  support  of  the  walls.  The  most  advanced  type 
of  dwelling  in  Western  and  North-Eastern  Congoland,  Guinea, 


399.  A RAPHIA  PALM  IN  FLOWER  AND  SEED 
The  Raphia  in  several  species  is  the  principal  material 
used  in  Congo  housebuilding. 


and  Eastern  Nigeria.  These 
bent-over-bough  shelter,  are  all 


HOUSES 


73i 


East  and  South-East  Africa,  is  that  in  which  the  ridged  roof 
is  erected  on  the  support  of  columns,  and  the  wattle,  plank,  or 
palm-midrib1  walls  are  built  up  to  meet  it. 

Finally,  in  the  border  regions  of  the  Congo  (extreme  south, 
east,  north-centre,  and  north)  (prior  to  1885)  clay  was  em- 
ployed as  a lining — outer  and  inner — to  the  wattle  walls.  This 
custom  did  not  exist  in  the  western  Cono*o  or  Angola,  where 
the  sides  of  the  house  were  of  grass  or  palm  fronds.  Grenfell 
writes  in  1885  : — 

“ On  ascending  the  Congo,  clay  houses  begin  at  Bumba.  The  Rubi 
clay  houses  are  round-ended. 

“At  Yambinga  some  of  the  houses  are  mud-walled  and  roofed 
with  bark.” 

Bumba  is  on  the  northernmost  reach  of  the  Congo.  Yam- 
binga is  near  to  Bumba  and  to  the  mouth  of  the  Rubi  or 
Itimbiri  River.  Up  this  stream  the  people  of  the  interior  are 
Bondonga  and  non- Bantu. 

The  Waujabilio  of  the  Lualaba  also  apply  mud  to  the  walls 
of  their  dwellings.  The  Dongo  people  of  the  western 
Mubangi  were  observed  by  Grenfell  to  have  houses  with  mud 
walls.  The  Bajande  of  the  Lulu  River  (western  Aruwimi)  use 
clay  to  plaster  their  wattle  walls  (the  women  do  this),  and  the 
walls  of  the  bigger  houses  of  the  Nyamnyam  and  Nsakara  are 
also  probably  plastered. 

The  Basoko  of  the  lower  Aruwimi  and  the  adjacent  Congo 
— near  neighbours  of  the  Bapoto  and  Bondonga  with  the  clay 
house  walls — build  low,  poor,  square  huts,  without  any  clay. 

Our  review  of  the  methods  of  hut  and  village  construction 
in  Congoland  might  begin  with  the  west  [premising  that  recent 
fashions  introduced  by  Europeans  are  not  dealt  with].  On  the 
Lower  Congo,  from  the  coast  regions  to  near  Stanley  Pool, 
the  type  of  house  is  rectangular,  usually  oblong,  with  a ridged 
roof,  and  is  built  of  poles,  sticks,  grass,  or  palm  or  reed  thatch 
and  walls,  and  is  frequently  provided  with  a roof  of  sufficient 
spread  of  eaves  to  provide  a verandah.  There  is  usually  a 
plank  lintel  before  the  doorway.  This  type  of  house  in 
Kakongo  and  the  Cataract  region  is  sufficiently  illustrated  by 
illustrations  Nos.  401  and  402,  and  is  admirably  described 
in  detail  on  page  1 1 1 of  Bentley’s  Kongo  Dictionary  and 
Grammar. 

1 In  this  chapter  frequent  reference  will  be  made  to  palm  midribs.  These  are 
the  stalk  of  the  frond  of  raphia  or  other  palms.  The  raphia  midrib  in  its  lower  part 
is  from  three  to  five  inches  broad,  one  to  two  inches  thick  (often  deeply  grooved), 
and  from  ten  to  thirty  feet  long. 


732  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


This  rectangular,  ridge-roofed  dwelling,  made  up  of  poles, 
sticks,  and  thatch,  extends  up  and  down  the  Lower  Guinea 
coast  between  the  Rio  del  Rey  on  the  north  and  the  Benguela 
region  on  the  south. 

These  Kongo  houses  are  usually  detached  and  scattered 
about  a square. 

In  the  Bakongo  countries,  on  the  Lower  Congo,  or  in  the 
Cataract  region  the  art  of  fortification  seems  to  have  been 


little  developed.  The  defences  raised  by  the  inhabitants  were 
not,  strictly  speaking,  fortifications.  The  villages  are  [or  were] 
surrounded  by  a labyrinth  of  dry  or  live  hedges,  made  of 
dracaena,  euphorbia,  or  possibly  bamboo.  These  hedges  inter- 
sect and  cross 
each  other,  so 
that  to  reach 
the  huts  one  re- 
quires a guide 
who  knows  the 
road  and  all 
the  turnings 
well.  For- 
merly, in  times 
of  insecurity 
the  adjacent 
paths,  except 
the  main  de- 
fended one 

401.  A TYPICAL  HOUSE  OF  THE  CONGO  CATARACT  REGION  leading  tO  the 


village,  were 

strewn  with  poisoned  splinters — very  dangerous  to  naked  feet. 

Unlike  the  Kongo  customs,  the  Bateke  houses  (between 
Stanley  Pool,  the  Kwa  mouth,  the  Alima  River,  and  the 
Ogowe)  are  grouped  close  together  about  a square  or  circular 
court,  or  are  sometimes  placed  in  rows  with  their  backs  to  a 
river.  They  are  built  of  raphia-palm  midribs  and  are  rect- 
angular, one  long  side  being  much  higher  than  the  other  and 
the  roof  slanting  at  a steep  angle  from  the  high  side  to  the  low 
— a “lean-to”  type  of  dwelling,  obviously  intended  to  be  built 
enclosing  a square,  or  face  to  face,  a narrow  alley  intervening. 
It  is  remarkable  that  houses  very  like  those  of  the  Bateke 
occur  in  the  north-eastern  part  of  the  Congo  basin  (see  pp.  755-6). 
According  to  Guiral  ( Le  Congo  Branfats)  the  Bateke  houses 
of  the  Ogowe  highlands  swarm  with  vermin  in  the  dusty  floors  : 
fleas,  jiggers,  head-lice,  body-lice,  and  bugs ! 


402.  NATIVE  VILLAGE  ON  KAKONGO  COAST,  NEAR  KABINDA 


U3RARY. . 

UMIVF-:-’  ry  of  ILLINOIS 


HOUSES 


735 


Here  are  a succession  of  notes  as  to  the  architecture  of 
South-West  Congoland,  between  the  Kwango  on  the  west,  the 
lower  Kasai  and  Lukenye  on  the  north,  the  Sankuru  on  the 
east,  and  the  Zambezi  watershed  on  the  south.1 

The  houses  of  the  Bay  aka  are  rectangular,  made  of  reeds, 
and  divided  into  two  compartments.  The  doorway  is  about 
five  feet  in  height  above  the  ground  ; with  a threshold  of 
wooden  blocks  about  eighteen  inches  high  across  the  entrance. 
The  door  is  made  of  raphia-palm  midribs  fastened  together 
by  wooden  pegs  (a  very  common  type  of  door  throughout 
Equatorial  Africa).  In  every  hut  there  is  a corner  where  the 


403.  A VILLAGE  IN  THE  NKUSU  COUNTRY,  KINGDOM  OF  KONGO, 
SOUTH  OF  CATARACT  REGION 


house-fetish  is  put,  and  there  weapons  and  cloth  are  stored  for 
greater  safety.  The  huts  of  a village  are  scattered  and  not 
arranged  in  any  order,  though  they  are  frequently  built  with 
the  major  axis  running  north  and  south. 

The  village,  is  swept  every  morning  by  the  head-man. 
Every  married  woman  has  a separate  hut  for  herself  and  her 
children  and  the  use  of  her  husband  when  he  visits  her.  Un- 
married men  live  together,  several  in  a hut.  (Torday.) 

In  the  Baholo  country  (middle  Kwango)  chiefs’  houses  may 
(according  to  Grenfell)  be  tall  and  round  or  square,  with  a high 
doorway  of  heavy  timber  flanked  with  squared  logs,  often  richly 
carved.  The  heavy  grass  or  palm  thatch  hangs  down  to  the 


1 The  exact  location  of  the  tribes  can  be  ascertained  on  the  map. 


736  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

ground,  something  after  the  fashion  of  the  Basongo  houses 
much  farther  east.  [ Vide  illustration  p.  205.] 

The  huts  of  the  Ba-huana  are  of  two  types,  corresponding 
respectively  to  those  of  the  Ba-Mbala  and  those  of  the  eastern 
Ba-yanzi.  The  last-named  type  is  built  of  straw  and  palm 
leaves  on  a rectangular  ground-plan,  the  transverse  section 
forming  a pointed  arch  ; there  is  a verandah  in  front,  and  the 
interior  is  divided  into  two  compartments.  The  roof  is  secured 
against  wind  by  means  of  large  branches  laid  across.  To  the 
front  of  the  house,  under  the  verandah,  are  attached  various 


404.  A RIVERSIDE  TOWN,  NORTHERN  CONGO,  NEAR  BUMBA 

objects,  such  as  skulls  of  animals  slain  in  the  chase,  small  pack- 
ages containing  “fetish,”  empty  eggshells,  arrows,  etc.  The 
villages  are  built  at  some  distance  from  the  river  bank  and  are 
rather  straggling ; the  wives  of  a man  live  each  in  her  own 
hut,  and  these  huts  are  arranged  so  as  to  form  an  irregular 
quadrangle,  which  is  connected  by  a narrow  path  with  the 
next  and  similar  group.  Unmarried  men  have  each  their 
own  hut. 

The  Bambala  dwellings  are  rectangular.  Those  of  the 
chiefs  are  sometimes  thirty  to  forty-five  feet  long.  They  often 
include  a loft  or  partial  upper  story,  reached  by  a ladder  and 
a window  or  door  under  the  eaves.  The  Bakwese  houses  are 


II. R 


405.  THE  VILLAGE  OF  CHIEF  SENGA  AT  YAKUSU,  NEAR  STANLEY  FALLS 


HOUSES 


739 

made  of  grass,  square,  with  a domed  roof,  the  walls  about  four 
and  a half  feet  high.  There  is  no  verandah. 

The  huts  of  the  Lunda  and  Kioko  peoples  do  not  ordinarily 
exhibit  a high  degree  of  taste  or  ability  in  design  or  structure. 
They  are  generally  of  the  beehive  type,  but  there  are  also 
square,  oblong,  and  round  houses  with  walls  distinct  from 
roof,  and  round  houses  with  hiodi  conical  roofs.  Some  huts  have 
the  quadrangular  gabled  roof  ending  in  an  apex  at  the  middle. 
The  original  type  was  no  doubt  the  beehive.  The  materials 
are  poles,  sticks,  withes,  and  grass.  Chiefs’  or  kings’  residences 
are  divided  into  many  courtyards  and  enclosures  like  those  of 

Uganda. 

The  dwellings  of  the  Baluba  peoples  (Bena-Lulua,  Barua) 
are  rectangular,  with  roofs,  however,  that  are  more  often 
rounded  than  ridged.  They  are  usually  divided  by  a partition 
into  a sleeping  apartment  and  a sitting  and  eating  room. 

Grenfell  describes  the  western  Bakuba  houses  as  being 
rectangular  and  made  of  split  planks  lined  with  grass,  and 
roofed  with  mats  which  end  on  the  roof-tree  by  their  long 
handles  or  sticks  (to  which  they  are  plaited)  crossing  one 
another.  The  corner  posts  of  the  houses  are  sometimes  of 
living  wood,  which  grows  at  either  angle  into  a bushy  tree  (this 
is  the  appearance  of  a chiefs  house.)  The  planks  to  which  he 
refers  are  possibly  of  split  borassus  palms. 

His  colleague,  the  late  Rev.  Harry  White,1  sent  home 
sketches  and  descriptions  of  the  Bakuba  and  Basongo  houses 
along  the  north-eastern  Sankuru,  near  Lusambo.  They  were 
pyramidal  or  very  tall  cone  structures  of  withes  and  grass,  rising 
to  a height  of  twelve  to  fourteen  feet  from  the  ground,  roof  and 
walls  in  one.  On  the  apex  was  a kind  of  chimney-pot  of  per- 
pendicular sticks  or  reeds.  The  doorway  was  porched  and  was 
rather  high.  There  must  have  been  very  little  floor  space.  The 
smaller  houses  of  the  common  people  were  truncated  cones, 
with  somewhat  domed  roofs. 

Torday  thus  describes  the  grass  houses  of  the  middle 
Sankuru — in  populous  villages  sheltered  by  tall  banana  groves 
and  oil  palms  : — 

“ These  constructions  are  only  found  on  the  middle  Sankuru  : they 
have  a height  of  fifteen  feet,  and  nine  feet  of  width  by  twelve  feet  of 
length  ; the  walls  are  made  of  big  poles  of  twelve  feet  in  length,  fixed 
vertically  in  the  ground  at  a distance  of  four  to  six  inches  from  each 

1 Mr.  White  visited  the  Sankuru  in  B.M.S.  Peace  in  1891.  He  collected  much 
information  about  the  northern  Congo,  which  is  embodied  in  this  book.  White  died 
in  1897. 


740  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

other.  The  frame  of  the  dome  is  constructed  by  long  flexible  sticks 
which  starting  from  the  top  of  the  stakes  proceed  to  meet  at  the  centre, 
describing  the  arc  of  a half-circle.  The  whole  construction  is  covered 
with  a thick  thatching  of  dry  grass.  In  the  upper  part  of  the  straw 
house  a rack  of  wattles  is  hung ; it  serves  as  a loft  for  keeping  the 


406.  STYLE  OF  HOUSE  NEAR  THE  MOTIMA  RIVER  (BETWEEN  MONGALA 
BASIN  AND  NORTHERN  CONGO) 


different  provisions,  which  being  continually  smoked  by  the  permanent 
fire  maintained  in  the  hut,  are  thus  kept  free  of  insects.” 

Though  he  describes  these  dwellings  as  peculiar  to  the 
middle  Sankuru,  this  domed  structure  is  really  somewhat  wide- 
spread in  South-Central  Congoland  and  is  particularly  character- 
istic of  the  eastern  Bakuba. 

A Basonge  or  “ Zappo-Zap”  dwelling  is  rectangular , the  roof 
inclining  to  an  oval  shape.  To  build  a house  the  Basonge  trace 


HOUSES 


74i 


an  outline  nine  or  ten  feet  square.  Along  this  outline  they 
dig  holes  to  receive  logs  of  wood  about  ten  inches  in  diameter, 
planted  one  against  the  other,  and  rising  about  three  and  a half 
feet  above  the  ground.  A long  flexible  withe  is  fastened  to 
each  of  the  four  corner  logs.  These  withes  when  drawn  to- 
gether at  the  top  give  an  oval  shape  to  the  roof.  Living  in  a 
country  of  prairies,  the  Basonge  use  tall  grasses  to  cover  their 
huts,  fastening  them  to  the  framework  by  means  of  small,  very 
flexible  lianas  or  “bush-rope.”  A Basonge  hut  is  usually  divided 


407.  A TYPICAL  VILLAGE  OF  THE  INTERIOR  OF  THE  NORTHERN  CONGO 
(BOPOTO  DISTRICT) 


into  two  parts,  separated  by  a partition  covered  with  matting. 
The  bedroom  has  a small  opening  on  the  outer  side,  hidden  by 
grasses  ; by  which  the  natives  escape  on  occasions  of  nocturnal 
surprises  by  an  enemy. 

On  the  upper  Lukenye  River  the  Apamba  and  Bakuju 
tribes  build  rectangular  huts  as  on  the  Lower  Congo.  As  they 
are  forest  dwellers  they  do  not  employ  grass  for  thatching,  but 
roof  their  huts  with  large  leaves  about  ten  inches  broad  and 
fifteen  inches  long,  which  are  arranged  regularly  like  tiles  on  the 
framework  of  the  roof  and  are  additionally  secured  by  laths 
tied  with  lianas. 

The  Bashilele  villages  are  situated  in  the  middle  of  woods 


742  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

which  cover  the  valleys  and  the  sides  of  the  hills,  the  more  level 
country  being  grass-land. 

A village  contains  twenty  or  fifty  rectangular  huts  about 
twrelve  feet  by  seven,  built  continuously  in  a square,  the  doors 
opening  on  to  a central  space  which  serves  as  a public  meeting- 
ground  where  assemblies  and  dances  are  held.  The  villages 

o # ...  o 

are  surrounded  by  a palisade  of  palm  midribs  nine  feet  high,  in 
which  four  doors  are  cut,  each  one  protected  by  a second 
palisade. 

The  Bashilele  manner  of  establishing  a village  is  as 


408.  HOUSE-BUILDING,  BOLOBO 


follows.  Having  found  a suitable  site,  covered  with  raphia 
palms,  they  clear  the  ground  all  round  and  build  their  huts 
more  or  less  in  a square  in  between  the  palms  which  they  leave 
standing.  It  is  a crime  to  cut  down  a raphia  or  an  oil  palm. 
They  thus  find,  on  the  spot,  fibre  for  the  manufacture  of  stuffs, 
rafters  and  laths  for  partitions,  fronds  for  thatching  the  roofs, 
beds  and  seats,  planks  for  palisades,  materials  for  bows  and 
arrows,  and  the  innumerable  household  utensils  and  apparatus 
for  hunting  and  fishing ; finally,  oil  and  palm  wine. 

The  eastern  Bayanzi  of  the  Kwilu- Kasai  build  houses  of 
two,  or  even  three,  types  : one,  rectangular,  with  ridged  roof 
and  two  compartments,  about  four  feet  and  a half  high  at  the 
sides  and  twelve  feet  long,  built  of  grass,  the  threshold  of  the 


HOUSES 


743 


door  rising  fifteen  inches  from  the  ground  ; the  second  kind, 
semi-cylindrical,  with  a verandah  supported  on  poles,  similarly 
divided  in  two  compartments,  about  six  feet  high  ; also  a simpler 
form  of  this  last,  without  a verandah. 

In  the  eastern  part  of  the  Congo  basin  Grenfell  makes  fre- 
quent references  to  “houses  of  the  Wenya  (Bagenya)  type,  with 
a lianda.”  These  he  also  encountered  on  the  Lomami  River 
(besides  the  main  Lualaba-Congo)  at  i°  20'  S.  Lat.  Probably 
he  is  referring  to  the  semi-cylindrical  house  with  a verandah 
described  by  Torday  in  connection  with  the  eastern  Bayanzi. 

The  houses  of  the  forest-dwelling  folk  between  the  Congo 
at  Stanley  Falls  and  the  Nile  water-parting  [near  Lake  Albert 
Edward  and  the  Semliki]  are  well  illustrated  by  the  accompany- 
ing picture  (No.  417)  of  a Bakonjo  house  with  a porch.  This 
is  probably  the  “Burumbi”  type  of  hut  alluded  to  by  Grenfell. 

The  Arabs  and  their  slaves  have  introduced  the  rectangular, 
clay-bodied  Swahili  house  into  much  of  the  eastern  province 
of  the  Congo  State  by  now,  but  (it  is  said  by  Cameron  and 
Stanley)  even  before  they  dominated  the  land  the  Manyema  on 
or  near  the  Lualaba  built  rectangular  houses  of  considerable 
merit  as  comfortable  dwellings.  The  high-pitched  roof  came 
down  very  low  at  the  back  of  the  house  to  shield  the  occupant 
from  the  prevailing  wind.  In  front  the  widespreading  roof 
sloped  more  gradually  and  was  supported  on  poles  forming 
a verandah.  The  raised  platform  on  which  the  house  stood,  and 
also  its  walls,  were  neatly  plastered  with  clay.  This  description, 
however,  suggests  Arab  influence  in  a land  otherwise  (north  of 
Manyema)  given  up  to  conical  huts. 

The  houses  of  the  Waujabilio — apparently  uninfluenced  by 
Arab  suggestion — are  quite  elaborate  : compound  mud  huts, 
with  two  rooms,  one  square  with  ridged  roof,  the  other  round 
with  domed  roof.  The  walls  are  of  wattle  and  daub,  the  roof 
of  grass  thatch.  This  may  be  an  elaboration  of  Grenfell’s 
“ Wenya  ” hut,  because  the  Waujabilio  or  Wangobelio  immedi- 
ately succeed  the  Baganya  on  the  south,  as  the  water-people  of 
the  Lualaba-Congo. 

In  the  south-east  of  Congoland  the  houses  are  invariably 
round1  and  rather  squat.  [The  tall  conical  roofs  are  probably 
nowhere  found  south  of  6°  S.  Lat.  and  east  of  28°  E.  Long.] 
The  materials  used  for  their  construction  are  poles,  sticks, 
reeds,  grass,  with  hard  clay  floors  ; but  near  Lake  Bangweulu 
and  on  the  Nyasa-Tanganyika  plateau  the  house  walls  may  be 

1 Except  of  course  where  Arab  or  Nyamwezi  or  European  influence  has  intro- 
duced the  rectangular  building. 


744  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


plastered  with  clay — a practice  no  doubt  recently  introduced 
from  East  Africa. 

Among  the  furniture  of  the  Mweru  houses  are  remark- 
able carved  stools  and  head-rests  (“native  pillows”).  These 

are  found  more  to 
the  north  and  west 
(Lubaland,  Lunda, 
Burua),  and  it  is 
probably  the  Lun- 
da invasion  which 
has  brought  them 
as  far  to  the  south- 
east  as  Lake 
Mweru.  Though 
these  head-rests 
(necessary  for  an 
elaborate  coiffure) 
can  be  traced  back 
in  their  origin  to 
Egypt,  they  are  at 
the  present  day 
more  characteristic 
of  Western  or 
Equatorial  Africa 
than  of  the  south  or 
south-east  regions, 
wherein  shaving  of 
the  head  is  more 
customary  or  hair- 
dressing is  neg- 

o o 

lected. 

Torday  furnishes 
some  interesting 
notes  on  peculiar  or 
exceptional  struc- 
tures in  South-East 
Congoland  : — 


409.  A STOOL  FROM  LAKE  MWERU, 

south-east  congoland  « really  remark- 

able fortification  was 

seen  by  the  Bia-Francqui  expedition  on  the  banks  of  the  Lubudi,  the 
great  tributary  of  the  upper  Lualaba  west  of  the  Mitumba  Mountains. 
The  village,  named  Kia-Gimea,  was  situated  on  the  bank  of  the  river, 
and  defended  on  that  side  by  a long  wall  of  earth,  about  one  yard  in 
breadth,  at  least  three  yards  in  height,  and  pierced  with  loopholes. 


HOUSES 


745 


“ On  the  side  of  the  plain,  away  from  the  Lubudi  banks,  there  were 
no  less  than  seven  concentric  “ bomas  ” (stockades)  joined  up  to  the 
wall.  These  “bomas”  were  very  close  one  to  the  other,  with  just 
space  enough  between  each  for  a ditch  and  a very  narrow  path.  The 
ditch,  a yard  and  a half  deep,  was  armed  with  pointed  stakes  and 
chevaux-de-frise.  A door  in  the  wall  gave  access  to  the  river  ; another 
on  the  opposite  side  in  the  outer  “ boma  ” opened  to  the  plain.  There 
was  a door  in  each  of  the  interior  “ bomas,”  but  instead  of  facing  each 
other  these  openings  were  at  different  points  in  the  semicircle,  so  that 
the  besieger,  having  forced  the  first,  would  be  compelled  before  finding 
the  second  to  run  round  the  narrow  ledge  of  path  (avoiding  the  trench 
alongside),  all  the  time  enfiladed  by  the  projectiles  of  the  defenders. 


410.  A HEAD-REST  FOR  SUPPORTING  THE  HEAD  DURING  SLEEP 
(NORTHERN  BAMBALA  COUNTRY,  S.W.  congoland) 


“ Towards  the  sources  of  the  Lualaba  there  are  other  noteworthy 
fortifications,  remarkable  above  all  from  the  position  of  the  villages  they 
protect.  The  district  is  studded  by  small  isolated  hillocks  formed  of 
huge  chaotic  masses  of  magnetite,  embedded  in  ferruginous  clay.  The 
fall  of  these  blocks  caused  by  some  former  landslip  had  left  cavities, 
sometimes  extensive,  in  the  sides  of  the  mountain,  and  the  natives  have 
adopted  these  cavities  for  their  homes,  closing  them  by  a simple  wall  of 
dry  reeds.  Each  subterranean  dwelling  is  fronted  by  a small  terrace 
where  the  family  attend  to  their  daily  duties.  The  summit  is  crowned 
by  fine,  large  huts,  in  which  the  chief  and  his  family  live.  The  base 
of  the  hillock  is  surrounded  by  a solid  “ boma,”  well  fortified,  but  not 
fronted  by  a ditch. 

“ In  certain  regions  of  the  great  country  of  Burua,  in  the  kingdom 
of  Kasongo-Museya,  east  of  the  upper  Lomami,  natural  resources  are 


746  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


much  utilized  in  constructing  defensive  works.  Many  of  the  villages 
have  palisades,  but  a thick,  impenetrable  bush  surrounds  this  fortifica- 
tion, and  places  where  a passage  is  practicable  are  set  with  short,  up- 
right poisoned  splinters  of  reed  very  dangerous  to  unshod  feet. 

“In  the  same  districts  along  the  upper  Lualaba  and  in  the  Garanganze 
country  of  Katanga  the  enclosure  is  surrounded  by  strong,  thick  hedges 
of  Euphorbia  arborescens  (?  E.  hermentiana),  which  form  so  efficacious  a 
defence  that  the  palisaded  “ boma  ” is  sometimes  neglected.  Certain 
villages  of  the  Lunda,  such  as  Lukolela  on  the  upper  Lualaba,  are 
surrounded  by  a live  hedge  of  thorny  acacias  ; these  plants  growing  in 
thick,  vigorous  bushes  hide  the  huts  of  the  inhabitants,  and  are  impene- 
trable by  the  naked  bodies  of  the  besiegers. 

“ The  important  residence  of  the  chief  Ntenke  in  Katanga  has  a 

peculiar  addi- 
tion which  oc- 
curs rarely  else- 
where. Its  ob- 
ject is  to  render 
the  fortified  resi- 
dence able  to 
stand  a siege  by 
protecting  an 
access  to  water, 
not  only  to  en- 
able the  women 
to  draw  a water 
supply  in  safety, 
but  also  to  per- 
mit the  besieged 
in  their  last  re- 
sort a hazardous 
escape  by  the 
river.  This  con- 
sists of  a short 
tunnel  of  withes, 
a diverticulum, 

projected  from  the  principal  palisade,  with  which  it  communicates  by 
means  of  a postern.  Fortified  like  the  enclosure  with  stakes  and 
brushwood,  the  tunnel-passage  goes  straight  to  the  river,  which  runs 
forty-five  feet  below.  If  the  river  is  not  wide  (as  at  Ntenke)  the  twin 
stockade — like  a weir — is  carried  to  the  other  side,  where  it  is  closed. 
If  the  river  is  wide  it  takes  in  just  enough  to  give  a sufficient  supply  of 
water.  Besides  the  chief  object  for  which  it  was  built,  this  protected 
access  to  the  water  has  the  secondary  advantage  of  enabling  the 
besieged  to  attack  the  enemy  in  flank.” 


411.  A STOOL  ORNAMENTED  WITH  BRASS  NAILS  AND  HUNG 
WITH  A BELL  AND  WHITE  BEADS  (NGOMBE  COUNTRY, 
UPPER  CONGO) 


In  the  central  part  of  the  Congo  basin,  beginning  on  the 
west  above  the  Kwa  confluence  with  the  Congo,  we  are  in  a 
region  of  rectangular  houses,  often  very  long  and  built  con- 
tinuously in  streets. 


HOUSES 


747 


Babangi  (or  ivestern  Bayanzi)  houses  vary  from  twenty  to 
a hundred  yards  in  length,  and  are  ranged  on  each  side  of  a 
fairly  wide  street,  stretching  sometimes  for  several  miles. 
Their  appearance  is  sufficiently  indicated  by  Grenfell’s  numer- 
ous photographs.  The  materials  are  the  long  midribs  of  the 
raphia  palm  (locally  termed  “bamboos”),  and  a thatch  of  reeds 
or  (more  often)  Blais  palm  fronds.  The  threshold  is  a log  of 
wood,  frequently  the  section  of  a palm  trunk. 

In  the  country  to  the  south-east  and  east  of  Bolobo,  behind 
the  riverain  Babangi,  the  Batende  and  Batito  houses  are  larger 
and  better  built  than  those  on  the  main  Congo.  The  Batito 
dwellings  have  broad  palm-leaf  walls  very  neatly  laid  between 
laths.  They  contain  a clay  platform  about  one  foot  above 
the  general  level  of  the  floor.  The 
roof  is  rounded  at  the  end  into  a 
semicircular  dome.  In  other  re- 
spects they  are  rather'  like  the  Ba- 
bangi houses,  with  horizontal  paral- 
lel rows  of  bamboos  in  the  sides, 
and  fine  grass  thatching.  (Gren- 
fell.) 

The  houses  in  the  neighbour- 
hood  of  the  River  Mfini  and  Lake 
Leopold,  apart  from  their  frame- 
work, are  entirely  composed  of 
fronds  of  the  Elais  (oil)  palm.  The 
small  door  which  encloses  the  en- 
trance of  the  house  is  made  of 
raphia  midribs.  The  houses  are 

built  on  a bed  of  hard-beaten  clay,  raised  to  the  height  of  a 
foot  to  prevent  the  rain  water  from  running  into  the  interiors. 

Usually  the  furniture  of  a house  consists  of  two  or  three 
bedsteads,  each  made  out  of  smooth  logs  of  wood  laid  on  the 
ground  and  covered  with  a mat ; pottery  of  different  kinds  used 
for  cooking  purposes  or  for  drinking-water  [there  may  be  large 
jars  containing  a reserve  supply  of  water,  or  small,  often  elegant 
vases  of  whitish  clay  in  which  water  is  kept  cool  to  quench  the 
thirst]  ; baskets  or  paniers  for  going  to  the  fields  and  market ; 
a pestle  and  mortar ; some  wooden  or  earthenware  plates  and 
dishes,  and  spoons  of  wood,  iron,  or  mussel-shell ; and  one  or 
two  primitive  knives.  In  one  corner  there  is  always  a collection 
of  dry  wood  used  for  keeping  up  the  fire  [Congo  negroes 
maintain  a fire  constantly  in  the  house].  On  the  walls  are  hung 
a number  of  small  objects,  such  as  antelope  horns,  shell  work, 


412.  VASE  FOR  DRINKING-WATER 
FROM  THE  BABUMA  PEOPLE, 
NEAR  THE  MFINI  RIVER 


748  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

birds’  feathers,  tufts  of  leaves,  dried  grasses,  etc.,  constituting 
so  many  charms  to  which  the  householder  attributes  certain 
powers  of  healing  and  preservation.  The  people  of  this  region 
manufacture  much  salt  from  the  potash  of  the  burnt  reeds  and 
marsh  plants.  They  also  fabricate  the  Nkula  or  Tukula  colour- 
ing powder,  made  of  red  wood,  for  body  painting.  Consequently 
their  dwellings  must  provide  considerable  storage  room. 

The  houses  of  the  Mongo  ( Bankundu , Balolo)  are  described 
as  rectangular  with  one  of  the  long  sides  open  half-way  up,  so 
that  it  forms  a broad  verandah.  There  is  a partition  down  the 


413.  HEAD-REST  OR  PILLOW,  AND  WOODEN  POWDER-FLASK 
(BANGALA  PEOPLE,  NORTH-WESTERN  CONGO) 


middle  corresponding  with  the  line  of  the  roof-ridge  and  securing 
some  privacy  for  the  sleeping-room  recess,  which  contains  a bed 
of  palm  midribs.  The  houses  are  often  built  continuously,  end 
to  end,  and  are  arranged  in  squares  or  crescents. 

The  Bangala , Bwela , Aknla , Bcipoto , and  some  of  the 
northern  “ Ngombe"  tribes  likewise  build  long,  low,  rectangular 
houses,  similar  to  those  of  the  Babangi,  and  use  palm  midribs 
much  in  their  framework.  The  roof  is  usually  prolonged  (with 
a very  gradual  descent)  along  the  front  or  street  aspect,  and, 
supported  by  columns  of  tree  stems,  makes  a convenient  and 
shady  verandah. 

An  average  Bangala  house  in  the  Equator  district  has  a 
length  of  twenty-four  feet,  a breadth  of  seven  and  a half  feet, 


HOUSES 


749 


an  altitude  of  about  five  feet  ten  inches  under  the  roof-ridge, 
while  the  walls  along  the  long  sides  are  only  about  three  feet 
high  above  the  ground.  The  roof  has  two  sides.  Like  the 
upright  walls,  it  is  covered  with  palm  leaves.  A plain  frame 
supports  the  six  sections  which  form  the  house,  and  the  palm 
midribs  of  the  framework  are  bound  by  bands  of  reeds  or 
rushes  [rather  resembling  Uganda  reed  work].  A single  narrow 
opening  placed  in  the  front  gives  access  to  them.  There  is 
neither  a window  nor  outlook  of  any  kind. 


414.  BWELA  HOUSES  NEAR  MOTIMA  RIVER,  SHOWING  ROOFS  OF  PALM  MIDRIBS 

The  inside,  all  glistening  and  blackened  by  the  smoke  of  the 
perpetual  fire,  is  furnished  only  with  a few  stools  cut  in  one 
block  from  the  trunk  of  a tree,  mats,  baskets,  earthenware, 
weapons,  and  finally  a low  frame  which  serves  as  a bed.  These 
houses  are  easily  taken  to  pieces,  carried  away,  and  recon- 
structed. Well-to-do  men  with  many  wives  may  possess  as 
many  as  twenty  long  dwellings. 

The  roof  of  the  eastern  Bangala,  northern  Ngombe,  and  of 
the  Poto  and  Bwela  houses  is  sometimes  made  of  closely  fitting 
palm  midribs  laid  like  long  curved  tiles.  Farther  east,  strips 
of  bark  are  used  for  roofing.  The  use  of  clay  in  the  houses  (?  of 


he  found  many  of  the  riverside  populations  living  in  “house- 
canoes”  (vide  illustration,  p.  126) — a very  sensible  plan  in  a 
country  so  often  under  water  after  heavy  rains. 

In  the  Equator  district  the  Bangala  villages  generally  consist 
of  a road,  nearly  straight  and  parallel  with  the  river,  clean,  well 
beaten,  and  eighteen  feet  wide.  On  both  sides  houses  follow’ 
each  other  grouped  together  by  the  owners,  with  intervals  of 
ten  to  fifty  yards  between  the  groups.  The  intermediate  spaces 
are  occupied  by  grass  which  only  leaves  room  for  a straight 
path. 

In  all  the  larger  Bangala,  Babangi,  and  Ngombe  villages 


750  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  Ndonga  tribe)  on  the  Rubi  River  has  been  already  noted. 
These  dwellings,  of  a non- Bantu  people,  are  apparently  different 
in  type  to  those  of  the  Bangala  and  northern  Ngombe.  One 
end  is  rounded.  The  Basoko  houses  east  of  the  Rubi  con- 
fluence are  still  rectangular,  but  they  are  low  and  poor  and 
like  degenerate  renderings  of  the  often  handsome  and  com- 
modious  Bangala  dwellings. 

In  the  eighties,  when  Grenfell  first  explored  the  Upper 
Congo  between  Stanley  Falls  and  the  mouth  of  the  Aruwfimi, 


415.  A VIEW  IN  A BWELA  TOWN,  NORTHERN  CONGO,  TO  SHOW 
NEARLY  CONTINUOUS  HOUSES  BUILT  IN  STREETS 


HOUSES 


The  square  is  covered  with  well-beaten  clay  of  a whitish  colour. 
As  a background  to  the  whole  view,  magnificent  groves  of 
banana  trees  are  planted.  Some  of  the  northern  Ngombe 
villages  are  surrounded  by  strong  stockades. 

Apparently  the  long  rectangular  house  of  the  west-centre 
comes  to  an  end  near  the  confluences  of  the  Aruwdmi  and  at 
Stanley  Falls  (Yakusu).  The  type  also  does  not  extend  up  the 
Lomami. 

The  villages  of  the  southern  Ngombe  (between  the  main 
Congo  and  Lopori)  are  described  by  Lord  Mountmorres  as 
being  filthily  dirty  and  composed  of  dishevelled-looking  (?  round) 
span-roofed  huts.  They  are  surrounded  by  palisades  with 
elaborate  gates  and  heavy  beams,  so  constructed  as  to  fall  and 


75i 

there  is  a guest-house  or  palaver-house — ngumba — in  the  centre. 
[Vide  pp.  118-20.] 

Along  the  northern  Congo  the  Bangala  villages  are  often 
built  to  form  a square  which  is  bordered  by  rectangular  patches 
of  banana  trees  and  other  vegetation.  In  addition,  some  natives 
raise  a double  row  of  palm  trees  almost  in  a straight  line,  the 
growth  of  which  they  arrest  in  order  to  develop  the  trunk  and 
leafage,  which  gives  the  village  street  or  square  a charming 
appearance.  At  the  rear  and  sides  of  the  houses  grow  masses 
of  high  grass  sprinkled  with  oil  palms,  fig  trees,  and  bombax. 


416.  ENTRANCE  INTO  STOCKADED  TOWN  OF  THE  NGOMBE  PEOPLE 
(The  lady  in  the  foreground  is  Mrs.  Wm.  Forfeitt.) 


752  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

crush  any  undesirable  intruder — a precaution  which  is  very 
necessary  in  a part  infested  by  leopards. 

The  house  of  the  lower  Lomami  (before  the  Arabizing  of 
this  part)  and  the  dwelling  perhaps  of  the  Lindi  and  Chopo 
basins  and  of  the  country  behind  the  north  bank  of  the 
Lualaba-Congo  was,  according  to  Grenfell,  a low,  round  hut 
with  a projecting  front  porch,  roofed  and  walled  with  plantain 
leaves,  neatly  retained  in  place  by  long  withes.  This  hut  is 
sometimes  thatched  with  grass  outside  the  leaf  “ tiling.”  Gren- 
fell calls  it  the  “ Burumbi  ’n  house.  It  is  the  prevailing  type  of 
dwelling  between  the  southern  slopes  of  Ruwenzori  and  the 


417.  BANANA-LEAF  HUT  WITH  PORCH,  CALLED  BY  GRENFELL 
A “BURUMBI”  DWELLING 
This  style  prevails  as  far  east  as  the  slopes  of  Ruwenzori. 


west  coast  of  Lake  Albert  Edward,  on  the  east  and  the  middle 
Aruwimi,  Lindi  River,  and  Stanley  Falls  on  the  west  and 
north. 

In  the  much-flooded  regions  of  the  lower  Lomami,  Juapa, 
Lulongo  rivers  there  are  lake  dwellings,  rectangular  houses  built 
on  piles. 

Ascending  the  Aruwimi  from  its  confluence  with  the  main 
Congo,  the  untidy  square,  ridge-roofed  huts  of  the  Basoko,  or 
the  clay-covered  houses  of  the  Bajande  give  way  to  a very 
marked  form  of  the  conical-roofed  dwelling  shaped  like  an  ex- 

1 The  present  writer  has  equally  associated  this  porched,  round,  beehive  hut  with 
the  Bakonjo  people.  Grenfell  writes  that  the  type  extends  across  the  Lualaba-Congo 
(Bagenya)  to  the  Lomami. 


HOUSES 


753 


tinguisher.  This  type  seems  to  have  originated  in  the  north  of 
Congoland  (Mubangi-Wele  basin)  and  to  have  attained  special 
development  in  the  Aruwimi  valley,  and  thence  to  have  pene- 
trated in  a modified  form  through  East-Central  Congoland  to 
the  verge  of  the  Manyema  country,  to  Bakuba-  and  Luba- 
land,  and  even  to  the  Lunda  plateau. 

According  to  Grenfell  and  Mountmorres,  the  Lohali  people 
of  Panga  (Aruwimi)  make  houses  that  are  extraordinarily  beauti- 
ful. The  principal  form  of  structure  consists  of  a small  square, 
four-walled  hut,  as  a rule  almost  exactly  six  feet  square.  The 
walls  are  four  feet  in  height.  The  roofs  are  carried  to  a con- 
siderable height,1  and  are  like  four-sided  cones,  constructed 
wholly  of  large  marantaceous  leaves  fastened  in  horizontal  rows 
against  a frame  of  basket-work,  so  that  the  houses  in  rows 
have  the  appearance  of  huge,  clipped  yew  hedges. 

“ The  Panga  tribe  build  these  in  groups  and  clusters  round  little 
squares,  varying  them  with  small,  span-roofed  huts  and  span-roofed 
shelters  supported  on  highly  polished  substantial  wooden  pillars.  The 
squares  or  courtyards  are  enclosed  by  leaf  screens  stretching  from  hut 
to  hut,  and  the  entrance  to  each  hut  is  not  from  the  courtyard,  but  from 
the  back,  access  to  which  is  given  by  doors  in  the  leaf  screens.  The 
courtyards  themselves  are  kept  scrupulously  clean  and  well  brushed,  and 
contain  nothing  but  the  seats  of  the  occupants  of  the  huts  and  in  the 
centre  the  smouldering  logs  which  form  the  source  of  fire.  All  the 
domestic  litter  and  domestic  operations  are  confined  to  the  back  behind 
the  leaf  screens.  In  these  villages  trees  are  planted,  or  at  any  rate 
left  standing,  so  as  to  form  shelter  at  intervals  in  the  courtyards  and 
along  the  connecting  streets  from  one  courtyard  to  another.” 

“ As  one  approaches  Banalya  one  comes  to  another  division  of  this 
tribe  who  also  construct  the  quadrilateral,  spire-shaped  huts  of  the 
Panga,  but  who  arrange  them  in  long,  severe  lines,  the  length  of  straight 
streets  devoid  of  trees  or  other  shade,  and  this  difference  is  the  keynote 
of  the  difference  of  the  character  of  the  tribes.  For  whilst  the  essential 
feature  of  the  Panga  is  picturesqueness,  that  of  the  Banalya  is  sombre 
dullness.”  (Mountmorres.) 

These  leaf-thatched,  steeple-crowned  dwellings  extend  in 
range  to  the  Lindi  River  in  the  south-east  and  the  Turumbu 
of  the  main  Congo. 

The  Pygmy  houses  of  the  Aruwimi  have  already  been 
described.  Their  low,  round,  span-roofed  hut  is  a type  also 
met  with  among  the  taller  Forest  negroes  of  the  Aruwimi.  For 
instance,  the  Babili  of  Bomili,  who  are  described  as  a back- 
ward Forest  people  of  repulsive  appearance  and  extraordinary 

1 Eighteen  feet  is  a Belgian’s  estimate. 

II. — s 


754  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

timidity,  live  in  dwellings  that  are  very  diminutive,  with  roofs 
like  those  of  the  typical  Pygmy  houses,  the  framework  of  which 
is  simply  the  span  of  a long,  bent  stick  describing  a hemispheri- 
cal curve.  (Mountmorres.) 

The  confluence  of  the  Nepoko  and  the  Aruwimi  marks  in 


418.  IN  A BANALYA  VILLAGE,  ARUWIMI  RIVER 
To  show  the  conical  steeple-crowned  houses  roofed  with  leaves. 


the  Aruwimi  valley  the  dividing  line  between  two  styles  ol 
architecture.  Below,  the  houses  are  conical  ; above,  they  are 
rectangular,  oblong,  surrounded  by  large  trunks  of  red-wood 
trees,  which  form  separate  courts  and  act  as  fortifications. 
Defended  by  men  armed  with  weapons  of  precision,  one  of 
these  villages  could  only  be  taken  by  a strong  attacking  force. 


HOUSES 


755 

On  the  upper  Aruwimi  or  Ituri  there  is  a medley  of  house- 
building styles.  Besides  the  ever-recurring  Pygmy  hut,  there 
are  the  continuous  street-like  plank  dwellings  of  the  semi- 
Bantu  peoples,  allied  to  the  far-distant  Ababua  ( Bagboro , 
Balese , Iyugu , Babundi).  These  are  either  erected  in  straight 
rows,  face  to  face,  with  a narrow  passage  between,  or  are 
arranged  in  a horseshoe  shape.  The  roof  has  a single  slope, 
pent-house  fashion,  like  the  house  of  the  Bateke  people,  twelve 
hundred  miles  away  to  the  west.  These  steeply  slanting  roofs 
of  a single  pitch  are  neatly  tiled  with  huge  leaves,  the  points 
of  which  overlap  with  precision,  and  give  to  the  tile-like 
thatch  the  appearance  of  a pangolin’s  scales. 

Stanley,  in  his  In  Darkest  Africa , thus  describes  these 
continuous  plank  dwellings  : — 

‘'The  architecture  [of  the  Balese  country]  was  peculiar.  Its  peculi- 
arity consisted  in  a long  street  flanked  by  a long,  low  wooden  building, 
or  rather  planked  building,  on  either  side,  200,  300,  or  400  feet  long.  At 
first  sight  one  of  these  villages  appeared  like  a long  gable-roofed  struc- 
ture, sawn  in  exact  half  along  the  ridge  of  the  roof,  and  as  if  each  half- 
house had  been  removed  backward  for  a distance  of  twenty  or  thirty 
feet,  and  then  along  the  inner  sides  had  been  boarded  up,  and  pierced 
with  low  doors,  to  obtain  entrance  into  independent  apartments.  The 
light  wood  of  the  Rubiacece  affords  good  material  for  this  kind  of  house. 
A sizeable  tree,  one  foot,  eighteen  inches,  or  two  feet  in  diameter,  is 
felled,  and  the  log  is  cut  into  short  pieces  from  four  to  six  feet  in  length  ; 
the  pieces  are  easily  split  by  hard  wedges,  and  with  their  small,  neat 
adzes  they  [the  Balese]  contrive  to  shape  the  plank  smooth,  tolerably 
even,  and  square.  They  are  generally  an  inch  or  an  inch  and  a quarter 
thick.  For  what  is  called  the  ceiling  or  inner  boarding  the  boards  are 
thinner  and  narrower.  When  a sufficient  number  of  boards  and  planks 
are  ready,  the  inner  ceiling  is  lashed  to  the  uprights,  frequently  in  as 
neat  a fashion  as  a carpenter’s  apprentice  might  do  it  with  saw,  nails, 
and  hammer ; on  the  outer  side  of  the  uprights  are  lashed  the  thicker 
planks,  or  broad  slabs.  The  hollow  between  the  inner  and  outer  frame 
is  then  stuffed  with  the  phrynia , or  banana  leaves.  The  wall  facing  the 
street  may  be  nine  feet  high,  the  back  wall  facing  the  forest  or  clearing 
is  four  or  four  and  a half  feet  high,  the  width  of  the  house  varies  from 
seven  to  ten  feet.  Altogether  it  is  a comfortable  and  snug  mode  of 
building,  rather  dangerous  in  case  of  fire,  but  very  defensible,  with 
trifling  labour.” 

From  a note  of  Grenfell’s  in  1902,  it  would  appear  that  this 
strange  and  interesting  people  (Balese  and  congeners)  and  their 
architecture  have  been  swept  away  by  the  Manyema  and 
Zanzibari  Arabs. 

Often  as  at  Iyugu,  on  a tributary  of  the  Ituri,  each  set  of 
plank  houses  was  built  in  a horseshoe  or  semicircle  in  such 


756  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

a way  that  the  two  extremities  nearly  joined.  Two  doors 
closed  this  curious  concentric  village,  which  then  formed  a 
perfect  circle ; in  the  middle  a large  space  was  left.  This 
formation  was  adopted  for  purposes  of  defence,  but  was  of  no 
avail  against  Manyema  guns. 

The  inhabitants  of  Utiri  have  a special  system  of  fortifica- 
tion, but  in  reality  it  is  merely  the  system  of  the  boma,  or 
stockade  applied  to  each  private  dwelling.  The  village  is 
composed  of  a series  of  low  wooden  huts,  with  double-gabled 
roofs.  Each  house  is  surrounded  by  a courtyard  enclosed  by 
a solid  palisade  of  thick  logs,  and  becomes  thus  a small  fortress 
belonging  to  a single  family,  who  has  charge  of  its  defence. 
A great  dissemination  of  forces  is  caused  by  this  plan  of  organ- 
ization, but  it  increases  also  the  difficulties  of  an  attack,  each 
house  representing  a citadel  to  be  conquered. 

Still  higher  up,  on  the  edge  of  the  Nile  watershed,  in  the 
Busese  or  Buvira  country  of  Mazamboni  [the  once-powerful 
chief  of  Stanley’s  story],  architecture  again  changes.  To  the  west, 
within  the  limits  of  the  great  forest,  there  are  populous  villages, 
consisting  for  the  greater  part  of  a single  street,  thirty  to  sixty  feet 
wide.  This  is  bordered  with  slant-roofed  houses  of  the  same 
shape  and  height,  and  joining  one  another  without  any  break  in 
the  line.  One  might  often  estimate  a single  construction  at  six 
to  nine  and  even  over  twelve  hundred  feet  in  length.  Around 
the  villages  are  cultivated  fields  and  pasture  land.  These 
strange  buildings  are  low,  long,  and  the  slope  of  the  roofs  is 
from  front  to  back.  The  house  of  the  chief  may  be  recognized 
by  a great  block  of  wood,  close  upon  four  feet  wide,  five  feet 
high,  and  two  inches  thick.  In  this  the  low,  narrow  door  is 
cut.  The  broad  eaves  rise  in  front  to  nine  feet  above  the 
ground,  and  at  the  back  to  about  four  feet.  The  houses  are  ten 
feet  wide.  The  roofing  projects  two  and  a half  feet  beyond 
the  front  and  over  two  feet  beyond  the  back  wall. 

In  the  eastern,  grass-land  part  of  Mazamboni’s  country  the 
huts  are  round,  low,  with  a pointed  roof ; very  much  like  those 
of  Unyoro  and  much  of  East  Africa. 

The  great  Ababua-Babati-Bakango  congeries  of  negroes 
(linked  together  mainly  by  language — a corrupt  and  somewhat 
peculiar  Bantu  dialect)  extends  from  the  Bagburu  or  Balese  of 
the  upper  Aruwimi  westwards  to  the  Likati  and  upper  Rubi, 
and  north  to  the  Wele  and  Bomokandi.  Being  composed  of 
many  ethnic  mixtures  and  tribes,  with  but  the  one  link  of 
language,  it  is  not  surprising  that  even  the  Ababua  themselves 
have  more  than  one  type  of  dwelling.  The  Baieu  section 


HOUSES 


757 


builds  huts  of  beehive  shape,  and  occasionally  cylindrical  houses 
with  the  tall  extinguisher  roof  already  described.  The  walls  of 
these  cone-shaped  houses  are  sometimes  made  of  a single  piece 
of  thick  bark,  about  twenty- four  feet  long.1  The  Ababua 
tribes  in  the  basin  of  the  upper  Rubi  (as  well  as  the  non- Bantu 
Ndonga ) build  round  houses  of  poles  and  fill  up  the  interstices 
with  mud.  The  more  northern  Ababua  (those  more  in  contact 
with  the  Manbettu) 
construct  rectangu- 


lar dwellings,  the 
walls  of  which,  out- 
lined by  a few  stout 
poles,  are  built  en- 
tirely of  mud. 
These  large  oblong 
houses  have  a door- 
way at  each  end. 
They  contain  two 
or  three  beds  [about 
five  feet  long  and 
two  feet  broad] 
made  of  beaten 
clay.  These  beds 
are  covered  with 
mats.  Chairs  are 
adapted  from 
forked  branches  or 
are  carved  out  of 
blocks  of  wood  ; 
boxes,  made  of  bark 
on  a wooden  base, 
contain  the  various 
possessions  of  the 
inhabitants.  The 
fireplace  is  situated 
in  the  middle  of  the 


419.  A STOOL  FROM  THE  BAN  ALYA  COUNTRY,  ARUWIMI 
RIVER,  COVERED  WITH  BEATEN  COPPER 

hut.  The  village  of  these  rectangular 
houses  is  built  in  the  form  of  a long  street,  in  which  is  situated 
a big  shelter  with  a roof  similar  to  those  of  the  huts,  in  which 
men  with  nothing  to  do  spend  the  day.  A sentry  is  posted 


nothing 

before  the  shelter  day  and  night.  Villages  are  often  built  in 
places  where  swamps  form  a natural  defence,  but  where  this  is 
not  the  case  an  artificial  hedge  with  only  three  or  four  entrances 
surrounds  them.  (Dr.  Vedy.) 


1 Dr.  Vedy. 


758  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  original  type  of  house  in  the  countries  of  the  Man- 
bettu,  Nyamnyam , and  Nsakara  was  round,  with  a peaked 
roof,  and  this  is  the  prevailing  type  still,  everywhere  in  the 
Mubangi-Wele  region  and  the  northernmost  limits  of  the 
Congo  basin,  except  the  chiefs’  houses  among  the  Manbettu, 
and  except  the  dwellings  of  the  people  to  the  west  of  the 
Grenfell  Falls  at  Zongo  and  on  both  banks  of  the  lower 

Mubangi  below  N.  Lati- 
tude 3°.  The  exceptions 
are  rectangular. 

The  N y a m ny  a 771 
(Azande)  have  no  real 
villages.  Gathered  in 
small  groups,  the  peaked- 
roofed  houses  form  great 
chaplets,  which  follow  the 
curves  of  the  streams  and 

there  in  their  continuity  by 
tufts  of  bananas  and  palms. 
Each  family  occupies  one 
section  of  the  great  line, 
and  the  interval  between 
one  section  and  another  is 
filled  with  Elais  palms. 

The  Nyamnyam  deco- 
rate their  houses  tastefully, 
trace  on  their  doors  and 
walls  pictures  of  animals 
and  men,  and  even  make 
attempts  at  rude  sketches 
of  scenery  either  with  yel- 
low clay  or  charcoal. 

The  houses  are  round,  and  the  walls  are  usually  plastered 
with  clay.  The  roof  is  high,  rising  in  the  centre  into 
a tall  peak  or  stalk,  and  looking  like  the  inverted  calyx  of  a 
flower.  The  everted  rim  of  the  roof  projects  beyond  the  house 
walls  considerably  and  thus  affords  a shelter  against  rain.  The 
part  which  overhangs  rests  on  posts  and  forms  a continuous 
verandah  round  the  dwelling.  The  building,  except  for  its 
fantastic  roof,  somewhat  resembles  the  houses  of  Southern 
Nyasaland  or  of  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa.  Cooking  is  done 
in  a special  hut,  which  has  a still  more  pointed  roof  than  those 
which  are  used  for  sleeping. 


valleys,  broken  here  and 


420.  A SIX-PRONGED  STICK  USED  AS  BACK- 
REST, UPPER  CONGO 

(This  illustration  also  shows  the  pile  cloth  of  the  Bakuba 
country,  which  makes  its  way  in  trade  to  the  northern 
Congo,  and  also  the  curiously  woven  caps  of  the  Ngombe 
people.) 


HOUSES 


759 


Certain  small  houses  called  bamogi  are  covered  with  a 
bell-shaped  roof.  Built  in  the  foriji  of  a cup,  they  rest  on  a 
foundation  of  beaten  clay,  which  raises  their  small  door  to 
a certain  height  above  the  ground,  thereby  placing  the  entrance 
out  of  the  reach  of  wild  beasts. 

The  framework  of  the  door  of  the  bamogi  is  ornamented 
with  designs  (lozenges,  angles,  squares,  etc.),  which  are  repeated 
on  a kind  of  frieze,  which  starts  half-way  up  and  runs  round 
the  small  building.  These  small  houses  are  reserved  for  young 
boys,  who  are  sent  to  them  to  sleep  as  soon  as  they  are  of  an 
age  to  be  separated  from  their  elders. 

Among  the  Manbettu  architecture  in  timber  and  palm  midribs 
is  advanced  to  a point  of  perfection  which  is  said  to  have  been 
equalled  in  no  other  part  of  Central  Africa,  Uganda,  even,  not 
excepted.  The  houses  of  the  common  people  are  round,  with 
walls  of  grass  between  the  withes  and  with  conical  roofs.  But 
they  build,  or  used  to  build,  veritable  palaces  for  their  princes, 
side  by  side  with  immense  halls  which  served  for  receptions  and 
public  meetings.  These  last  were  as  much  as  fifteen  feet  wide, 
sixty  feet  long,  and  forty-eight  feet  high.  These  buildings 
united  in  the  most  complete  manner  elegance  and  strength,  and 
called  forth  the  admiration  of  Schweinfurth.  The  materials 
used  for  their  construction,  at  once  solid  and  light,  were  the 
stalks  of  the  raphia  palm,  whose  natural  polish  and  brilliant 
beautiful  brown  tint  gave  the  structure  a finish  and  elegance 
with  which  the  earlier  explorers  were  much  impressed.  These 
large  buildings  of  the  Manbettu  had  a gabled  roof  at  each  end. 
The  devastation  of  the  Sudanese  slave-traders  [who  slew 
Schweinfurth’s  friend,  the  stately  chief  Munza]  abolished  these 
mighty  structures,  made  chiefly  from  gigantic  palm  midribs. 
Now  the  Sudanese  or  Nilotic  influence  in  Manbettuland,  exer- 
cised through  the  Congo  State  soldiery,  is  tending  towards 
building  every  dwelling  on  the  circular  plan  and  with  much  less 
display  of  art. 

All  alone-  the  northern  Mubanofi,  from  the  Mbomu  con- 
fluence  to  the  Grenfell  Falls  at  Zongo,  the  houses  along  both 
banks  are  round  or  conical  with  pointed  roofs.  The  villages  of 
the  Sango  and  of  the  allied  Mongwandi  (basin  of  the  upper 
Mongala)  are  of  poor  construction  (except  in  the  far  south  at 
Bokapo,  where  the  cylinder-shaped  Mongwandi  huts  were  found 
by  Hodister  to  be  well  built  and  handsome).  The  house  of 
the  Sango-Mongwandi  is  cone-shaped,  the  entrance  is  low  and 
narrow,  the  roof  is  formed  of  bundles  of  sticks  tied  together  at 
the  apex  top  and  covered  with  a quantity  of  dried  leaves,  so 


760  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


that  the  rain  cannot  penetrate  through.  The  walls  often  con- 
sist of  a single  huge  roll  of  bark,  kept  upright  by  stakes.  The 
doors  are  made  either  of  dead  leaves  or  rudely  adzed  planks. 

Among  the  Babali , a Bantu  tribe  who  live  on  the  banks  of  the 
Dua  (the  great  eastern  affluent  of  the  Mongala),  there  are  lake 
dwellings.  These  houses  are  of  a rectangular  shape,  built  on 
piles,  and  the  native  enters  by  climbing  up  great  notched  poles 

or  timbers  placed 
against  the  rim 
of  the  house 
platform.  The 
floor  of  these 
lake  dwellings  is 
made  of  logs, 
laid  closely  one 
against  the 
other. 

The  Banza 
people  between 
the  Mongala 
River  and  the 
western  Mu- 
ban  g i build 
houses  that  are 
praised  by  nearly 
every  traveller 
that  has  visited 
this  excellent 
people,  whose 
language  relates 
them  to  the 
Mundu  of  the 
Bahr-al  - Ghazal 
frontier.  The 
Banza  dwelling 
is  spacious,  the  average  breadth  being  nine  feet  ; the  higher 
walls  and  the  form  of  the  roof  give  space  for  standing  up- 
right. The  pointed  dome  of  the  thatched  roof  rests  on 
a (?  bark)  cylinder,  the  walls  of  which  and  the  cap-shaped  roof 
are  about  equal  in  height.  A straw  spire  surmounts  the 
dome,  artistically  covered  with  long  grass.  The  entrance  is 
above  all  remarkable,  as  it  opens  under  a peculiar,  very  pointed 
gable,  which  juts  out  from  the  dome,  almost  similar  to  the 
dormer  windows  seen  on  the  roofs  of  Gothic  buildings, 


421.  A B.M.S.  HOUSE  BUILT  ON  PILES  (BOPOTO, 
NORTHERN  CONGO) 


HOUSES 


761 

“The  villages  of  the  Banza  are  admirably  planned,  well  constructed, 
scrupulously  clean.  . . . They  are  composed  of  lofty,  thatched,  conical 
huts,  the  floor  of  which  is  raised  above  the  ground.  These  huts,  in  front 
of  each  of  which  is  a picturesque  shelter,  are  set  along  wide,  straight 
streets,  at  the  end  of  the  section  of  which  are  often  buildings  of  a semi- 
public character.  The  style  of  architecture  and  general  planning  of  the 
villages  is  entirely  different  from  that  of  the  Banziri.”  (Mountmorres.) 

These  last  (who  may  be  Bantu  or  semi- Bantu,  and  who  live 
to  the  west  of  the  Grenfell  (Zongo)  Falls),  together  with  the 
Bantu  tribes  of  the  lower  Mubangi,  all  build  rectangular  houses. 
Along  the  course  of  the  Sanga  there  are  pile  dwellings , like 
those  of  the  eastern  Dua  River.  The  rectangular  house  of  grass, 
palm  midribs,  or  adzed  planks  with  ridged  or  penthouse  roof  is, 
west  of  the  Mubangi,  the  universal  type  as  far  as  the  Benue 
basin  and  right  away  through  the  coast  and  forest  regions  of 
Guinea.  Only  the  Pygmy  tribes  of  the  Ogowe,  Sanga,  and 
South  Cameroons  build  round,  span-roofed  huts  like  those  of 
the  Aruwimi  dwarfs.  The  round  hut  is  particularly  East  African 
in  type,  but  was  possibly  the  earliest  form  of  dwelling  in 
Nigeria  and  Senegambia,  and  still  exists  immediately  behind 
the  coast  belt  of  Guinea.  The  rectangular  house  is  a West 
African  invention,  and  the  steeple-crowned ’ conical  hut  a peculiar 
development  of  the  round  house,  entirely  confined  in  its  dis- 
tribution to  the  very  heart  of  Central  Africa. 

In  all  the  western  region  of  the  Congo  between  Stanley 
Pool  and  the  coast,  and  here  and  there  on  the  upper  river, 
intelligent  and  well-to-do  natives  now  deliberately  imitate  the 
missionaries  or  the  railway  officials  in  their  style  of  building. 
The  house  is  invariably  rectangular,  and  is  raised  above  the 
ground  on  piles.  This  is  a safeguard  against  damp  and  a dis- 
couragement to  mosquitoes.  Unfortunately  they  also  aspire  to 
the  hideosities  of  corrugated  iron,  and  have  not  as  yet  developed 
what  ought  to  be  one  of  the  great  industries  of  the  Congo 
region — brick  and  tile  making.1  But  the  old  style  of  Congo 
dwelling — grass  or  palm-thatched — is  terribly  verminous  ; and 
although  corrugated  iron  may  induce  sunstroke  in  a European, 
it  at  any  rate  gives  no  harbourage  to  rats  and  insects. 

1 This  indictment,  I am  informed,  is  a little  out  of  date.  In  the  Cataract  region, 
especially  round  the  B.  M.S.  stations,  whole  towns  of  brick  and  mortar  are  springing 
up. 


CHAPTER  XXVII 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION 

THE  Pygmies  dig  pitfalls  for  catching  the  okapi  and 
other  large  game  of  the  forest ; they  also  envenom 
their  wooden  or  iron-tipped  arrows  with  a Strycknos  or 
Strophanthzis poison ,l  so  deadly  that  it  usually  kills  big  game  in 
an  hour  and  a man  or  smaller  beast  or  bird  in  less  time  than 
that.  The  Pygmies  also  employ  as  bird-lime  the  latex  of 
various  Apocynaceous  trees,  vines  (such  as  Strophanthus\  or 
shrubs  which,  though  not  coagulating  sufficiently  for  rubber- 
making purposes,  yet  after  a brief  exposure  to  the  air  become 
very  viscid.  They  may  also  make  use  of  springes  of  raphia- 
rind,  running  nooses,  and  traps,  but  these  arts  are  not  yet 
recorded  of  them.  The  Pygmies,  like  the  Bube  of  Fernando 
Po,  chiefly  obtain  their  game,  large  and  small,  by  direct  pursuit 
and  by  the  use  of  arrow  poison.  Some  of  the  dwarf  tribes 
(those  in  the  south-centre  principally)  keep  small  dogs  for 
hunting  and  fasten  wooden  bells  to  their  necks.  They  seem 
never  to  concern  themselves  with  fishing. 

Before  the  coming  (at  any  date  between  1000  b.c.  and 
1400  a.d.)  of  Hima  civilization,  with  its  improved  weapons  of 
iron  and  its  skill  in  the  manipulation  of  string  and  fibre  and 
the  carving  of  wood  with  iron  tools,  Congoland  hunting  in  the 
tribes  already  superior  in  culture  to  the  Forest  Pygmies  was 
probably  limited  to  the  contriving  of  pitfalls  and  simple  snares, 
the  use  of  bird-lime,  and  the  poisoning  of  penetrating  weapons 
pointed  with  bamboo,  palm,  or  bone  splinters.  Small  mammals 
were  captured  in  their  holes  or  nests  ; dogs  may  have  been 
employed  to  hunt  and  distract  the  attention  of  large  animals 
while  the  human  pursuer  could  approach  near  enough  to  shoot 
his  poisoned  arrow  or  aim  his  wooden  javelin.  Or  dogs  may 
have  been  of  use  in  driving  large  animals  in  the  direction  of 
the  hidden  pitfall  (in  which,  no  doubt,  a great  wooden  stake, 
pointed  in  the  fire,  was  artfully  and  firmly  planted). 

1 They  may  also  derive  this  paralysing  venom  from  the  leaves  and  branches  of  a 
species  of  Acocanthera  which  is  certainly  found  in  North  Congoland.  Vide  my 
Uganda  Protectorate , p.  873. 

763 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  76 3 

But  until  the  Hima  element  came,  with  its  improved  metal 
weapons,  its  use  of  nets  and  cunning  traps  and  other  dodges 
for  surprising  or  killing,1  Congo  man — Pygmy  or  bulky  Forest 
negro — was  not  a very  successful  hunter.  He  lived  much  as  a 
mere  predatory  mammal,  catching  fish  with  the  hands,  in 
streams  naturally  blocked  by  fallen  timber ; shooting  fish  with 
wooden  arrows  ; knocking  down  birds  and  monkeys  with  the 
boomerang  or  club  ; driving  big  game  into  pitfalls  or  morasses 
and  killing  it  with  poisoned  wooden  lances  and  arrows  (canes 
tipped  with  bone  or  stone-flake).2 


422.  A WRESTLING  MATCH  ON  THE  NORTHERN  CONGO 


In  warfare  against  his  own  species  his  weapons  were  much 
the  same  ; plus  the  use  of  hands,  arms,  teeth,  and  butting  head. 

He  wrestles  now  for  sport  and  in  rare  good  humour,  foul 
play  being  almost  less  existent  in  the  wrestling  matches  of  the 
Congo  and  the  Cameroons  than  in  our  own  modern  gladiatorial 
contests.  Yet  wrestling  began  with  the  attempt  of  one  male 
Pithecanthropos  to  break  the  back  or  crush  the  chest  of  another 

1 It  is  possible  that  the  unadulterated,  aboriginal  negro  may  have  been  without 
the  dog  as  an  assistant  in  hunting  until  he  received  it  from  the  Nile  basin.  In  Uganda 
and  Unyoro  legends  the  wandering,  civilizing,  cattle-breeding  Hima  demigod  is 
always  associated  with  a dog. 

2 It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  some  of  the  districts  of  the  northern  Congo, 
“arrow”  is  expressed  by  kati=u little  stick” 


764  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

male,  rival  in  love  or  too  emulous  in  food  appropriation.  And 
wrestling  in  Congoland  is  not  quite  forgotten  as  a death  grapple, 
any  more  than  biting  is  left  out  of  account  in  a hand-to-hand 
contest.1 

But  the  Hima  civilizer  from  the  Upper  Nile — by  routes 
direct  and  indirect — came  pre-eminently  to  the  Forest  negro 
and  the  Pygmy  as  the  Hunter,  armed  with  weapons  of  copper 
and  iron,  able  to  devise  harpoons,  fish-hooks,  axes,  choppers, 
spear-blades,  scimitars,  and  sharp-bladed  knives  ; cunning  in 
net-making  ; skilled  in  basket-work  and  the  devising  of  subtle 
traps.  Therefore  the  founder  of  dynasties,  the  demigod,  the 
Leader,  consolidator  of  peoples,  was  a Hunter  [in  fact  as  well  as 
in  tradition]  whose  skill,  courage,  and  adroitness  could  feed  his 


423.  A WRESTLING  MATCH  AT  BOPOTO,  NORTHERN  CONGO 


tribe  with  the  spoils  of  a perpetually  successful  chase  : for  man 
in  those  days  jostled  the  beasts  of  the  field,  who  required  a 
century  of  incessant  slaughter  before  they  learnt  to  flee  from 
his  approach. 

Guns  and  gunpowder  introduced  into  Western  and  Southern 
Congoland  by  the  Portuguese  between  the  later  sixteenth  and 
the  middle  nineteenth  centuries  still  further  affected  the  war 
between  man  and  beast.  Firearms,  in  fact,  have  nearly  exter- 
minated the  big  game  in  Western  Lubaland,  on  the  Lunda 
plateau,  in  Angola  and  in  the  kingdom  of  Kongo,  while  of 
course  they  made  native  warfare  far  more  destructive  and  slave 
raids  infinitely  more  depopulating. 

1 Wrestling  matches  were  formerly  very  popular  performances  with  the  stalwart 
Duala  people  of  the  Cameroons  estuary,  who  in  so  many  points  resemble  the  races 
of  the  northern  Congo.  They  played  a great  part  in  promoting  courtships  and  love 
affairs. 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  765 


By  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  use  of  flint 
guns1  had  reached  Stanley  Pool,  and  in  another  fifty  years  had 
slowly  ascended  the  main  course 
of  the  Congo  till  they  had  at- 
tained the  Ngombe  and  Bangala 
tribes,  amongst  whom  Stanley 
found  them  at  Rubunga  in  1877. 

The  slave  trade  had  given  way 
in  importance  to  the  demand 
for  ivory,  and  the  Bateke,  the 
Bayanzi,  the  enterprising  peo- 
ples of  the  middle  Kwango  and 
Kasai,  had  become  great  ele- 
phant hunters. 

Still,  when  the  white  man 
entered  inner  Cong’oland  as  a 
ruler  in  the  last  quarter  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  the  mass  of 
the  Congo  people  was  primitive 
in  its  armature,  both  for  the 
chase  and  for  war.  Guns  and 
gunpowder  were  practically  ig- 
nored, except  in  French  and 
Portuguese  Congo,  along  the 
main  Congo  as  far  up  as  Luko- 
lela,  and  among  the  Arabized 
tribes  of  western  Tanganyika 
and  the  Nyasa  - Tanganyika 
plateau,  and  of  course  in 
Western  Lubaland  and  the 
Lunda  states.  Over  the  greater 
part  of  this  vast  region  of  Cen- 
tral Africa  the  native  races  con- 
fined their  range  of  weapons  to 
the  bow  and  arrow,  lance,  spear, 
pike,  throwing-knife  (developed 
from  the  wooden  boomerang), 
dagger,  scimitar,  sword,  axe, 
chopper,  harpoon,  and  club. 

The  halberd  [or  double-headed  axe,  combined  with  a pike] 
had  been  introduced  into  Lunda,  together  with  a caricature 


424.  (i)  BOOMERANG-SHAPED  EXECU- 
TIONER’S KNIFE.  (2)  A WAR  AXE 
MOUNTED  ON  LONG  WOODEN  HAN- 
DLE, FROM  NORTHERN  CONGO,  PROB- 
ABLY DERIVED  FROM  THE  HALBERD 
IDEA  OF  LUBALAND 


1 On  pages  204,  209  Grenfell  describes  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  century 
muskets  he  observed  in  Western  Lunda,  a district  which  now  possesses  cap-guns  and 
breech-loading  rifles  in  abundance. 


766  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


of  the  medieval  helmet,  both  coming  of  course  from  Angola  ; 
and  the  crossbozv,  which  was  one  of  the  weapons  of  the 
fifteenth-century  Portuguese  soldiers,  has  also  penetrated  to 
South-West  Congoland.  It  is  found  here  and  there  among 
the  Bayaka,  Torday  met  with  it  (made  out  of  a raphia 
midrib)  among  the  southern  Bambala,1  and  Bentley  records 

its  lingering  use  among 

<r>  o o 

the  Bakongo,  who  call 
it  mfumba  (in  contra- 
distinction to  the  word 
ta  for  the  ordinary 
bow).  Curiously 
enough,  among  all 
these  people  it  is  a 
child’s  toy  (for  killing 
birds)  rather  than  a 
man’s  weapon.  The 
Fanwe  peoples  of  the 
Gaboon  hinterland  also 
possess  the  crossbow  ; 
it  is  met  with  amongst 
the  Indiki,  a remark- 
able semi- Bantu  people 
of  the  middle  Cam- 
eroons,  all  of  whose 
culture  comes  from  the 
east  and  north.  The 
crossbow  exists  among 
the  Bali  (North  Cam- 
eroons)  and  the  Baya 
tribes  of  the  Sanga 
sources,  who  extend  to 
the  confines  of  the 
Shari,  Benue,  and  Mu- 
bangi  basins,  and  who 
are  related  linguistically 
to  the  Indiki.  These  North-Eastern  Cameroons  people  seem 
to  have  received  this  weapon  with  other  culture  from  the 
Moslemized  negroes  of  the  Shari  watershed  and  Lake  Chad, 
and  they,  in  their  turn,  have  derived  the  crossbow  [as  they  did 
chain  armour]  from  Egypt.  Egypt  acquired  these  inventions 
from  the  Crusaders. 


425.  THROWING-KNIVES  FROM  THE 
ARUWIMI  RIVER 


Vide  note  by  Torday  and  Joyce  in  Journal  Royal  Anthropological  Institute  for 


1 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  767 


Thus  when  the  child’s  crossbow  of  raphia-palm  midrib, 
from  the  districts  south  of  the  Lower  Congo,  meets  the 
crossbow  of  heavy  wooden  stock  derived  from  some  Fan 
invader  of  the  northern  Bateke  country  \north  of  the  western 
Congo  watershed]  on  the  shelves  of  the  British  Museum, 
the  inventive  idea  which  created  them  both  may  well  have 
reached  remote  West  African  Bantu  Africa  by  two  very 
different  routes, 
one  via  Christian 
Portugal  and  the 
other  th  rough 
Moslem  Egypt ! 

The  wooden 
boomerang,  I be- 
lieve, has  not  yet 
been  discovered 
in  the  Congo 
basin  ; but  it  was 
obviously  (as  a 
throwing  - weapon) 
the  parent  of  the 
modern  throwing- 
knives  of  Northern 
and  North-Eastern 
Congoland.  These 
seem  to  have  origi- 
nated  in  the  Shari 
basin  and  the 
Bahr-al  -Ghazal, 
and  with  other 
northern  (as  con- 
trasted with  East- 
ern Bantu)  culture 
types  to  have  per- 
colated through  the 
forests  to  the  northern  bend  of  the  Congo  and  the  Ngombe 
and  Mongo  countries  south  of  it. 

Throwing-knives  seem  to  be  absent  from  the  Bakuba- 
Luba  regions,  the  Kasai  basin,  the  Lualaba,  and  Tan- 
ganyika. Their  distribution  is  apparently  limited  to  the 
Mubangi  watershed  and  the  northern  and  western  Congo, 
the  range  extending  north-westward  to  the  Fan  country. 
In  this  and  many  other  points  Fan  culture  is  Sudanian  and 
not  Bantu. 


426.  ANTELOPE-SKIN  QUIVER  AND  ARROWS  USED  BY 
THE  PYGMIES  OF  THE  ITURI  FOREST 


768  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  bow1  and  arrow  (the  arrow  having  been  originally 
tipped  with  a wooden  splinter  or  a bone  head)  were  no  doubt 
possessed  by  the  earliest  type  of  man  that  entered  the  Congo 
basin.  It  is  to  this  day  almost  the  only  weapon  of  the  Pygmies. 
Owing  to  the  early  use  of  poison,  the  arrow  became  as  much 
dreaded  as  the  bullet.  Like  the  use  of  firearms,  it  did  so  much 
to  equalize  opponents  ; and  there  is  little  doubt  that  the  Pygmies 

have  saved  them- 
selves from  extermi- 
nation at  the  hands 
of  the  invading 
Forest  negroes  and 
Bantu  by  their  adroit 
use  of  the  bow  and 
arrow  and  employ- 
ment of  deadly 
venom.  By  most 
of  the  big,  muscular 
races  who  have 
quitted  the  forest 
for  the  more  open 
country  a strong 
dislike  has  sprung 
up  for  the  use  of 
bow  and  arrow. 
Grenfell  mentions 
that  in  1885  a sort 
of  Peace  Conference 
sat  amongst  the  tur- 
bulent Bangala  in 
the  Equator  district, 
in  which  it  was 
agreed  that  bows 
and  arrows  should 
be  eschewed  by  all 
parties  henceforth  in  their  warfare  as  being  “ too  dreadful.” 
The  use  of  spears  and  lances  to  a certain  extent  involved 
seeing  one’s  opponent,  and  gave  greater  advantage  to  those 
possessed  of  superior  physical  force. 

Nowhere  in  the  Congo  basin  has  the  bow  developed  to 
such  an  extent  as  in  the  regions  of  the  Upper  Nile  or  of  the 
north-eastern  parts  of  British  Central  Africa.  Nowhere  yet  in 

1 For  shape  of  average  Congo  bow  (akin  to  that  of  the  Pygmies),  vide  illustration 
on  page  144. 

* 


427.  HUNTING  AND  WAR  ARROWS  (USUALLY  POISONED) 
FROM  THE  NORTH-EASTERN  CONGO  (MONGO  COUNTRY) 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  769 


the  Congo  basin  has  a tall  bow  with  an  inward  bend  in  the 
middle  of  the  stick  been  recorded  [the  Cupid’s  bow  shape]. 
Yet  this  type  is  common  in  the  Northern  Sudan  and  in  British 
Central  Africa.1 

Usually  the  Congolese  bow  is  short  and  much  curved,  with 
a string-  made  of  the  outer  rind 
of  the  raphia-palm  midrib  (in  the 
case  of  the  Pygmies  and  some 
of  the  Forest  tribes)  or  else  of 
the  twisted  string  of  raphia-palm 
fibre.  The  longest  and  least- 
curved  bows  seem  to  come  from 
country  between  the  Kasai-San- 
kuru,  Lukenye,  and  Juapa  rivers 
(v.  p.  143),  where  they  attain  a 
length  of  from  five  to  six  feet. 

Similar  bows  are  said  to  be  used 
by  the  non- Bantu  Bamanga  of 
the  north-eastern  Congo  bend, 
and  Stuhlmann  thought  he  saw 
in  kindred  Bakumu  bows  (on  the 
upper  Lindi  River)  a resem- 
blance to  those  of  the  Manbettu. 

The  arrows  of  Congoland  are 
usually  flighted,  not  with  feathers, 
but  with  strips  of  banana  or 
other  leaves  or  with  cat’s  skin. 

There  is  usually  a wad  or  pad 
to  protect  the  fingers  from  the 
rebound  of  the  bow-string.  This 
pad  among  the  Manbettu  and 
the  Pygmies  (vide  illustration  in 
my  Uganda  Protectorate ) may 
also  be  of  wood  and  be  a hollow 
receptacle  for  the  storing  of 
arrow  poison. 

The  bows  in  use  in  Western 
Congoland  before  they  were 

ousted  in  favour  of  gun  and  spear  were  small  and  bound  with 
the  skin  of  the  monitor  lizard. 

The  tribes  of  Congoland  that  use  the  spear  or  assagai  carry 
shields.  These,  however,  are  practically  never  made  of  leather, 

1 For  typical  shapes  of  the  bow  in  South-Central  Africa,  vide  illustrations  in 
author’s  British  Central  A frit  a. 

II. — T 


428.  NGOMBE  WAR  SHIELD,  NORTHERN 
CONGO 


770  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


as  in  the  Nile  valley,  in  parts  of  East  Africa,  and  amongst  the 
Fan  of  Equatorial  Africa.  Most  Congo  shields  have  a frame  of 
wood  or  withes,  and  are  faced  with  wicker,  or  finely  plaited 
leaves,  bast,  fibre,  or  basket-work.  There  is  a wooden  centre 
through  which  the  hand  or  arm  can  be  passed.  But  the  shields 
of  the  Upper  Juapa  people  (p.  144)  are  made  entirely  of 

wooden  slabs.  The  shield  of  the 
north-eastern  F orest  people  ( Barega, 
Kabwari)  slightly  recalls  that  of 
Uganda  by  having  a large  spiked 
boss  in  front,  usually  of  iron.  On 
the  long,  oval  shield  of  the  Nyam- 
nyam  a design  in  white  is  frequently 
woven  resembling  a Maltese  cross. 
A somewhat  similar  design  in  black 
occurs  in  the  shields  of  the  northern 
Ngombe  ( vide  page  76 9). 

The  Manbettu  shield  is  a rect- 
angular oblong  ; a rectangular  form 
with  the  corners  slightly  rounded 
appears  again  among  the  Ngombe 
of  the  southern  Congo  bank,  in 
its  northern  bend  ; and,  with 
sharp  corners,  among  the  Bashi- 
lange,  and  some  of  the  western 
Manyema  group,  and  the  Bajwe 
people  (Baguha,  west  Tanganyika). 
The  long  Manyema  shield  is  rect- 
angular at  one  end,  pointed  at  the 
other.  The  Mundu  shield  is  of 
wood,  thick,  rounded,  and  like  an 
exaggerated  bow  in  shape.  It  has 
a large  boss  of  hairy  skin  in  front 
and  is  bound  with  the  same  thick, 
429.  reverse  side  of  ngombe  fyi*j*y  hide  round  either  extremitv 

SHIELD,  NORTHERN  CONGO  1UI1/  U1UC.  1 ULUIU  CUIICI  CAllcmil y. 

It  is  an  indication  that  the  shield 
may  have,  in  some  directions,  developed  from  the  bow,  held  by 
its  taut  string  to  ward  off  a blow.  [This  is  borne  out  by  the 
configuration  of  the  bow-like  shields  of  the  Australian  abo- 
rigines,  which  bear  a most  remarkable  resemblance  to  those  of 
the  Mundu  people  in  the  north-east  corner  of  the  Congo  frontier.] 
The  spear  and  assagai  are  unknown  as  weapons,  not  only 
among  the  Pygmies,  but  in  the  heart  of  the  Mongo  country  and 
among  the  backward  tribes  of  the  Kasai- Kwilu- Kwango,  such  as 

o o 7 


430-  LOKELE  WAR  SHIELD,  NORTH-EASTERN  CONGO.  BACK  AND 
FRONT  VIEW 

the  Congo  basin  after  the  introduction  of  metal-working.  The 
first  spears  were  probably  of  copper,  and  were  confined  to  the 
northern  limits  of  the  Congo  basin.  When  the  Hima  or  Bantu 
invasion  introduced  the  working  of  iron,  spears  [together  with 

1 Some  of  these  forms  are  now  reproduced  in  metal,  while  in  the  island  of 
Fernando  Po  may  still  be  seen  the  original  barbed  wooden  spear. 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  771 


the  Bayaka,  Bambala,  Bahuana,  and  perhaps  Babuma.  Though 
long-pointed  and  even  barbed  stakes  were  employed  in  warfare 
or  in  hunting  long  before  the  introduction  of  the  metal  spear,1 
this  last,  which  was  the  exaggeration  of  the  lance  [while  the 
lance  or  assagai  was  simply  a big  arrow],  only  became  used  in 


772  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


iron  hoes,1  knives,  daggers,  choppers,  and  swords],  spread  over 
the  Congo  basin  where  the  immigrants  of  superior  culture  had 
obtained  a firm  hold.  But  down  to  the  present  day  certain 
districts  of  the  Congo  are  entirely  without  spears,  and  con- 
sequently without  shields,  especially  the  region  already  mentioned 
between  the  Kwango  and  the  Kasai  in  the  very  heart  of  the  Congo 

basin.  It  is  doubt- 
ful whether  the 
Congo  coast  peo- 
ples knew  much 
of  the  use  of  the 
spear  when  first 
discovered  by  the 
Portuguese.  They 
may  have  had 
lances  (assagais), 
knives  and  chop- 
pers, but  their 
principal  arm 
seems  to  have 
been  the  (small) 
bow  and  arrow. 
Such  spears  as 
were  in  the  coun- 
try were  associ- 
ated with  a su- 
perior caste  of 
hunters , a hunter 
aristocracy.  In 
fact,  an  interesting 
note  in  regard  to 
this  is  the  almost- 
identity  in  Wes- 
tern Bantu  Africa, 
from  the  Northern 
Cameroons  down 

to  the  sources  of  the  Zambezi,  of  the  word  for  hunter  and  spear 
(- kongo , konga , kunga) ; as  though  the  hunting  of  big  game  on 
a great  scale — and  consequently  the  profusion  of  meat  for  hungry 
people — has  been  a sequence  to  the  introduction  of  metal-working. 

The  spear  at  the  present  day  is  the  dominant  weapon  up 
and  down  the  northern  Congo  from  the  Bateke  of  Stanley 


431.  SHIELDS  FROM  THE  MONGO  COUNTRY,  NORTH- 
CENTRAL  CONGO 


1 In  some  of  the  western  Bantu  languages  the  same  root  word  expresses  hoe 
and  spear. 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  773 


Lokele  of  Stanley 
Balu- 


Falls.  It  is  also  used  by  the 


Pool  to  the 
Bakuba  and 
ba,  by  the  Ngombe 
and  all  the  races 
(except  the  Pyg- 
mies) between  the 
northern  Congo 
and  the  Mubangi. 

Nowhere  do  the 
blades  of  the  spears 
attain  anything 
like  the  develop- 
ment reached 
amongst  the  Ni- 
lotic  tribes  in 
Eastern  Equatorial 
Africa.  Perhaps 
the  longest  spear- 
blades  (about  two 
feet  long)  are 
found  amongst  the 
Bangala  and 
Ngombe.  The 
most  artistically 
finished  spears  are 
those  of  the  Ba- 
kuba, Basonge, 

Barega,  and  Ba- 
konjo.  The  Ban- 
gala  spears  are 
mainly  flat,  with 
little  or  no  rib. 

On  the  other 
hand,  there  is  a 
marked  rib  in 
the 
spears. 

the  small  spear- 
blades  amongst 
the  Barega  and 
northern  Manyema 
are  finely  executed,  with  a crescent-shaped  hollow  in  the  middle 
of  the  blade  on  either  side  of  the  central  rib.1 


Ngombe 
Some  of 


432.  WAR  SPEARS  (BANGALA,  BAYANZI,  BASOKO)  FROM 
THE  NORTHERN  CONGO 
(The  barbed  spear  is  used  in  hunting.) 


1 This  type  is  illustrated  on  page  462  of  my  work  on  British  Central  Africa. 


43 3-  “flounder-shaped”  knives  of  the  bayanzi  (wanguli)  of  the 

LOWER  KASAI  (TORDAY  COLLECTION) 

perhaps  a pointed  wooden  pike.  They  do  not,  as  a rule,  in 
hunting,  make  use  of  the  weighted  spear  or  harpoon,  which  is 
so  common  a feature  in  the  greater  part  of  negro  Africa — the 
spear-head,  poisoned  or  unpoisoned,  which  is  fastened  to  a 
heavy  block  of  wood  and  arranged  so  as  to  fall  by  its  own 
weight  when  a spring  is  released,  and  thus  plunge  into  the  back 
or  flanks  of  a big  beast. 

The  Bayaka  use  a sword  which  has  recently  been  borrowed 
from  their  northern  neighbours,  and  some  of  the  lower  Kasai 
tribes  have  picked  up  from  the  Bayanzi  the  use  of  this  weighted 
harpoon  as  a hunting  trap. 

The  Bayanzi , Bangala,  Ngombe , and  Balolo  in  the  vicinity 


774  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


To  sum  up  these  remarks  as  to  distribution  of  weapons. 
The  worst-armed  peoples  are  those  backward  tribes  between  the 
lower  Kwango  and  the  lower  Kasai,  and  also  perhaps  the  Forest 
peoples  between  the  upper  Lukenye,  Juapa,  and  middle 
Lomami,  as  also  the  various  Pygmy  groups  all  over  the  Congo 
basin.  These  tribes  have  little  else  than  the  bow  and  arrow, 
and  the  arrow,  even,  amongst  the  Kwango- Kasai  tribes  is 
seldom  or  never  poisoned.  Some  of  these  people  use,  in  addi- 
tion to  a bow  and  arrow,  a wooden  chib  or  cleaver  and 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  775 


of  the  northern  Congo  and  of  the  lower  Aruwimi  use  huge, 
broad  knives,  straight  swords  with  rounded  ends,  curved 
scimitars,  hatchets,  and  extraordinary  “ flounder  - shaped  ” 
choppers,  long-handled  axes,  besides  daggers ; nearly  all  of 
which  are  of  northern  origin,  and  can  be  traced  in  similar 

forms  to  the  Fan  tribes  on  the  north-  r _____ _ 

west,  and  right  away  into  the  Central 
Sudan.  They  also  use  throwing-knives . 

The  Bakuba  and  allied  tribes  manufacture 
the  most  beautiful  war  axes  for  ornament 
or  for  warfare,  and  use  a large  sickle- 
shaped knife,  but  do  not  as  a rule  employ 
the  characteristic  round-ended,  chopper- 
shaped sword-knives  of  the  Bayanzi  or 
Bangala.  Where  the  spear  prevails,  the 
bow  and  arrow  to  a great  extent  have 
been  given  up.  All  these  weapons,  of 
course,  are  fast  disappearing  in  favour  of 
the  gun. 

As  regards  defensive  operations  in  war- 
fare, they  have  been  limited  chiefly  to 
the  building  of  stockades  round  villages 
or  chiefs’  compounds.  These  have  been 
described  in  the  chapter  dealing  with 
houses.  The  approaches  to  such  villages 
in  times  of  war  are  set  with  sharp  splinters 
of  palm  midrib  or  bamboo,  or  are  ham- 
pered by  cunningly  devised  pitfalls. 

The  Bayanzi  arrange  their  defensive 
pitfalls  in  this  fashion  : In  the  centre  of 
the  road  is  a pitfall  half  disguised.  On 
either  side  of  the  road  are  other  traps  1 

completely  disguised.  The  unwary  by  434-  scimitar  - shaped 
avoiding  the  patent  pitfall  tumble  into  nyamnyam  country, 
one  or  other  of  the  well-concealed  traps 
alongside. 


Except  for  the  slave-raidin 


o-  razzias 


WELE  RIVER,  AND  A 
WAR  KNIFE  FROM  THE 
BAMANGA  COUNTRY, 
STANLEY  FALLS 


in  the  north,  south-centre,  and  east,  war 

is  never  made  on  a large  scale.  It  is  chiefly  provoked  by 
migratory  race  movements.  One  tribe  invades  the  domain 
of  another  and  then  fighting  ensues.  The  conquerors  es- 
pouse the  women  of  the  conquered  community  (unless  the 
latter  withdraws  beyond  reach  into  the  uninhabited  bush), 
sell  or  enslave  the  boys,  kill  and  eat  the  adult  male  prisoners. 


776  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


There  are  also  petty  wars  between  town  and  town,  usually 
resulting  from  the  abduction  of  women  or  the  stealing  of 
goats.  Peace -making  ceremonies  are  sometimes  elaborate, 
and  in  North  Congoland  are  often  accompanied  by  the  sacrifice 

of  a dog  (as  in 
Eastern  Equatorial 
Africa). 

Hunting  meth- 
ods, like  the  wea- 
pons of  war,  are  far 
more  developed  in 
the  north,  east,  and 
south  than  they  are 
in  the  centre  or  in 
the  Kwango- Kasai 
region.  [In  the 
Lunda  countries 
the  early  use  of 
guns  has  almost 

o 

exterminated  big 
game.] 

Among  the 
Ababua,  the  chief 
and  favourite  occu- 
pation of  the  men 
is  hunting-.  Game 
is  driven  by  dogs 
into  enormous  nets 
and  there  killed 
with  spears  and 
small  arrows  with 
iron  or  wooden 
heads.  Fishing  is 
practised  by  women, 
who  dam  a river 
and  take  the  fish 
out  with  their 
hands.  Fish  traps  also  are  laid,  and  sometimes  a river  is 
poisoned. 

In  the  region  between  the  Aruwimi,  the  Wele,  and  the 
Rubi,  most  of  the  tribes  of  the  interior  hunt  elephants,  buffaloes, 
the  Bongo  tragelaph  and  Cephalophus  antelopes,  monkeys, 
wild  pigs,  civet-cats,  and  birds.  The  Mabenja,  Babongoro, 
and  Baganjoro  also  hunt  the  hippopotamus  in  the  upper  Rubi. 


435.  (i)  BAYANZI  CHOPPER-SWORD.  (2)  DAGGER 
WITH  WOODEN  SHEATH 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  777 

Leopards  swarm  in  the  whole  of  this  region,  but  are  not 
hunted. 


“ When  the  natives  are  attacked  by  these  animals  they  defend  them- 
selves as  they  can,  and  sometimes  kill  them.  There  is  a legend  that 
some  women  have  the  power  to  charm  leopards,  to  fascinate  them  and 
tame  their  savage  instincts.  These  women,  it  is  said,  succeed  in  making 
the  leopard  meek,  submissive,  and  obedient,  and  when  it  has  been  well 
tamed,  the  woman  em- 
ploys it  as  an  instru- 
ment of  her  ven- 
geance.”1 

These  Ababua 
and  Ndonga  ne- 
groes hunt  ele- 
phants, for  which 
purpose  they  poison 
the  points  of  their 
spears  and  endea- 
vour to  surprise  the 
animals  while  they 
are  sleeping  or  feed- 
ing.  They  cun- 
ningly approach  as 
near  to  the  big 
beast  as  possible, 
avoiding  getting^  to 
wind  of  it,  with  a 
patience  of  which 
savages  alone  are 
capable.  When 
within  two  yards, 
with  an  absolute 
surety  of  aim,  they 
spear  the  animal  in 
the  flank  or  by  preference  in  the  trunk.  They  then  run  off, 
certain  that  the  poison  will  do  its  work. 

This  method  is  used  by  the  Mabenja,  Bagboro,  Baganjoro, 
and  Babongforo. 

In  the  plains  of  the  Wele  the  natives  assemble  in  bands  to 
hunt  elephants  ; they  attempt  to  surround  an  individual  elephant 
in  a favourable  spot  and  aim  spears  and  assagais  at  it  until  it 
succumbs.  This  method  of  hunting  being  very  dangerous, 
there  are  several  men  killed  each  time. 


436.  KNIVES  FROM  BANALYA,  ARUWIMI  RIVER,  WITH 
IVORY  HANDLES  (INCISED  PATTERNS)  AND  RIVETED 
WITH  BRASS 


1 Extract  from  a Belgian  report  quoted  by  Grenfell. 


778  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Elephants  are  also  captured  in  this  district  by  means  of 
snares.  For  this  purpose  the  natives  dig  deep  ditches  narrower 
at  the  top  than  at  the  bottom.  These  are  dug  in  places  fre- 
quented by  elephants  and  are  cunningly  covered  with  earth 
and  branches  of  trees.  Soon  after  an  elephant  falls  in,  the  people 

kill  it  with  their  spears.1 

The  Mabenja  and  the  Ba- 
soko  make  use  of  a special 
kind  of  trap.  They  first 
choose  two  trees  fairly  close 
to  one  another,  to  right  and 
left  of  a path  frequented  by 
elephants.  They  then  tie 
a piece  of  wood  across  the 
trees  tc  which  they  hang  a 
sharp  iron  spear,  loaded  with 
a heavy  weight.  This  spear 
is  kept  in  place  by  a kind 
of  catch  which  is  loosened 
when  the  elephant  treads  on 
a carefully  prepared  creeper, 
the  jerk  of  which  sets  the 
apparatus  in  movement,  so 
that  the  spear  plunges  into 
the  elephant’s  back. 

To  capture  antelopes,  wild 
pigs,  and  other  fairly  big 
animals,  the  same  kind  of 
pitfall  is  used,  only,  of  course, 
of  smaller  dimensions. 

In  places  where  game  is 
found  the  natives  fasten  in 

a vertical  position  nets  of  a 
437.  basoko  dagger  in  sheath,  lower  more  or  -iess  wide  mesh. 

Their  dogs,  well  trained  for 
the  purpose,  raise  the  game  and  drive  it  towards  the  nets.  The 
animals  caught  in  the  meshes  are  killed  with  spears. 

Birds  and  monkeys  are  killed  with  arrows.  Dogs  are 
employed  in  hunting  the  large  monitor  lizard.  The  hippo- 
potamus is  hunted  with  harpoons. 


1 “I  have  been  told  by  natives  of  a case  where  an  elephant  was  enabled  to  get 
out  of  a pit  by  other  elephants  throwing  branches  of  trees,  etc.,  into  th£  pit  so  that 
their  captured  comrade  could  scramble  out  and  escape  ; also  of  a wounded  elephant 
being  surrounded  by  some  of  its  companions,  lifted  by  their  trunks,  and  carried  back 
into  the  forest  in  safety.55  (Lawson  Forfeitt.)  / 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  779 

A hunting-spear  with  a barbed  blade  which  is  detachable 
from  the  stem  is  usually  employed  for  aiming  at  wild  pigs, 
either  the  Red  river-hog  or  the  Forest  pig. 

The  Bapoto  people,  like  those  of  the  Rubi-Aruwimi-Wele, 
also  dig  large  and  small  pitfalls  for  elephants  and  other  ground 
game.  Pitfalls  and  snares  (springes,  nooses)  are  almost  uni- 
versal throughout  Congoland,  even  among  the  Pygmies. 

The  Mongwandi  (Sango)  and  Banza  negroes  of  the  Mongala 
and  western  Mubangi  kill  many  elephants  by  means  of  the 


438.  AN  NGOMBE  MAN  OF  THE  NORTHERN  CONGO  WITH  HIPPOPOTAMUS 
HARPOON  AND  FLOAT 

weighted  harpoon.  The  hunter  constructs  a hiding-place  for 
himself  in  some  leafy  tree  overhanging  the  elephant’s  road 
to  the  water.  As  the  beast  passes  below  the  tree,  the 

native  lets  fall  a strong  harpoon,  weighted  with  a heavy 

log  of  wood.  The  animal,  wounded  in  the  back,  becomes 

infuriated,  and  tries  to  rid  itself  of  the  fatal  steel  ; but  the 

more  it  tries  the  deeper  the  steel  buries  itself  in  its  flesh. 
When  the  beast  is  at  the  end  of  its  strength,  the  native  finishes 
it  with  spear-thrusts. 

Here  is  a description  by  the  late  Rev.  Harry  White  of  a 
visit  to  a village  of  elephant-hunting  people  on  the  lower 
Mubangi  (Ngombe  Bantu,  bordering  on  the  Banza). 


780  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

“ On  the  Sunday  afternoon  we  visited  a village  where  the  wonder 
was  the  piles  of  elephant  skulls.  At  the  other  villages  hippopotamus 
skulls  turned  upside  down  made  a general  seat  under  the  shade  of  a 
palaver  tree  or  outside  the  dwelling.  These  are  common  trophies. 
And  at  the  village  visited  the  night  before  we  had  seen  a few  elephant 
skulls  and  some  fine  antelope  and  buffalo  heads. 
But  going  up  to  a tree  where  such  trophies  were 
piled  now,  we  counted  to  our  surprise  no  less  than 
twenty-five  elephant  skulls,  mostly  big  ones.  A 
hundred  yards  away  was  another  similar  pile,  indi- 
cating, I suppose,  the  Rialto  of  another  village, 
though  there  was  no  marked  boundary.  The  peo- 
ple who  can  show  such  a trophy  must  be  hardy 
and  daring  hunters.” 

The  Sango  and  the  Mongwandi  (Mongala- 
Mubangi)  are  fond  of  chimpanzi  and  monkey 
flesh,  and  also  like  monkey  skins  for  their 
adornment.  When  they  want  to  procure  a 
chimpanzi,  they  set  out  in  little  groups  and 
carry  one  or  two  nets  ; some  climb  the  trees, 
while  others  remaining  on  the  ground  utter 
piercing  cries  to  frighten  the  quarry  and  drive 
it  to  take  refuse  in  an  isolated  tree.  If  the 
ape  is  already  surprised,  feeding  or  playing, 
on  a solitary  tree,  the  huntsmen  lose  no  time 
in  setting  their  nets  round  the  foot  of  the 
tree,  while  the  more  agile  among  them  chase 
the  ape  about  the  branches  till  it  falls  to  the 
ground,  where  it  is  soon  captured. 

As  for  monkeys  of  medium  size,  or  birds 
as  large  as  a guinea-fowl,  the  Mongwandi  is 
often  dexterous  enough  to  bring  them  down 
with  an  arrow.  But  no  native  can  shoot  a 
bird  or  monkey  in  rapid  movement. 

4o9f  the  loIcNe1ePpeoR  Grenfell  makes  frequent  mention  of  the 
ple  with  detach-  crocodile  traps  made  of  logs  on  the  Upper 
able  spear-head  Congo  and  the  Lulongo  River,  but  does  not 
describe  the  mechanism. 

As  regards  Fishing , all  tribes  but  the  Pygmies  are  more  or 
less  intent  on  this  method  of  procuring  palatable  food.  Some 
tribes  make  temporary  migrations  at  the  right  season  (March, 
April,  May,  north  of  the  Equator,  according  to  Grenfell)  in 
order  to  follow  migrating  fish  or  to  poach  in  new  fishing- 
waters.  On  the  north-western  Mubangi,  riverain  tribes  like 
the  Bwajiri  and  Dambasi  leave  their  villages  for  two  or  three 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  781 

months  and  go  long  journeys  westward  to  fish  in  more  favour- 
able spots.  They  live  for  the  time  a nomadic  life,  women  and 
children  joining  in  the  work  of  the  community.  At  the  same 
time  they  engage  in  trade.  In  this  way  the  Bwajiri  travel 
distances  of  from  sixty  to  a hundred  miles  from  their  homes. 
They  go  among  the  Grenfell  Rapids  and  the  Zongo  country  to 
fish  and  trade  with  the  Buaka,  towards  whom  they  often  act 
as  veritable  invaders.  The  abundance  of  fish  in  the  western 
Mubangi  is  ever  acting  as  a lure  to  population  which  is  steadily 
setting  downstream.  As  to  methods  of  fishing*  angling-  with 

O o 7 o 


440.  FISHERMEN  WITH  THEIR  SEINE  ON  THE  NORTHERN  CONGO  (BOPOTO) 


a rod,  line,  and  hook  is  seldom  practised  by  grown-up  people, 
but  is  (very  properly)  regarded  as  a pastime  for  little  boys  or 
girls.  The  adult  negro  has  not  the  patience  to  waste  his  time 
so  ineffectually,  but  prefers  catching  fish  of  large  size  on  a 
grand  scale. 

Mr.  Torday  has  collected  for  me  the  following  information 
(from  Belgian  sources)  on  methods  of  fishing  in  vogue  among 
the  Basoko  and  Lokele  of  the  Aruwimi  confluence  and  the 
north-eastern  bend  of  the  Congo,  with  which  I have  incorpor- 
ated some  notes  by  Grenfell  and  Whitehead.  [These  methods 
may  be  said  to  prevail  all  along  the  Upper  Congo  from  Stanley 
Pool  to  Stanley  Falls  ; also  on  the  lower  Mubangi,  Ruki,  and 
Kwa  ; and  on  Lake  Leopold  II.] 


782  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

(1)  Basoko,  Liemba.  Carried  on  with  an  oblong  basket  in 
a shallow  piece  of  water  where  all  kinds  of  refuse  are  thrown. 
The  native  enters  the  water,  stirring  it  up  in  walking  and 
pushing  before  him  his  basket,  which  he  takes  up  every  minute. 
Only  quite  small  fish  is  caught  in  this  manner. 

(2)  Basoko,  Inango ; Bayanzi,  Libasa,  lilobo.  Fishing  with 
a rod,  line,  and  hook.  It  is  unnecessary  to  describe  this,  as  it 
is  well  known  to  every  one. 

(3)  Basoko,  Itangi ; Bayanzi,  Boluba.  A small  round  net, 
kept  open  by  a creeper,  and  containing  a special  kind  of  bait. 


441.  LETTING  DOWN  FISHING-NET  AT  BOPOTO 


The  voracious  fish  are  caught  by  their  gills  in  the  wide  meshes 
of  the  net,  which  is  kept  on  the  surface  of  the  water.  This  way 
of  fishing  is  chiefly  used  by  women.  One  person  can  attend 
to  ten  of  these  nets. 

(4)  Basoko,  Yophe ; Bayanzi,  Ntseli.  Small  hoop  net 
placed  at  the  mouth  of  rivers. 

(5)  Basoko,  Ikzvazenge.  Small  hoop  net  furnished  with  a 
cover  which  closes  quickly  when  a fish  touches  the  bait.  The 
latter  usually  consists  of  a piece  of  manioc  paste.  Only  one 
kind  of  fish,  known  by  the  native  name  of  Gonda,  is  caught  in 
this  manner. 

(6)  Basoko,  Ikutu;  Bayanzi,  Ntondo.  Lines  furnished  with 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  783 

a small  cylinder  float  made  of  wood.  Generally  a frog  is  tied 
to  the  hook,  as  certain  big  fish  are  very  greedy  of  this  bait. 

(7)  Basoko,  Diote.  Lines  furnished  with  a big  wooden 
float  and  baited  with  worms. 

(8)  Basoko,  Bolo.  Ordinary  line  with  a flexible  wooden 
stick.  It  is  generally  women  who  fish  with  lines,  which  they  fre- 
quently bait  with  insects. 

(9)  Basoko,  Kotiro  ; Bayanzi,  Bosilo.  Round  net  kept  open 
by  means  of  a liana  or  bush-rope  used  in  the  same  way  as  a 
liemba . 

(ro)  Basoko,  Moso.  Big  round  net,  kept  open  by  a liana. 
Worked  by  three  natives  in  a canoe.  Two  of  them  stir  up  the 
fish  from  the  bottom  of  the  river  with  long  poles,  and  the 


442.  SYNODONTIS  DECORUS,  A BLACK-SPOTTED  FISH  FROM  STANLEY  POOL  AND 
THE  UPPER  CONGO,  ABOUT  NINE  INCHES  LONG  : EATEN  BY  THE  NATIVES 


third  attends  to  the  net,  which  he  draws  up  about  every  five 
minutes. 

(11)  Basoko,  Bulamba . A kind  of  sweep  net  held  by  a 
bush-rope,  one  end  of  which  is  passed  round  the  fishermans 
neck.  The  fisherman  throws  out  the  bulamba  from  a canoe, 
while  a comrade  steers  the  craft  at  the  back. 

(12)  Basoko,  Makayulu.  An  immense  net  or  seine  spread 
from  one  bank  to  the  other;  two  canoes  are  placed  at  either  end, 
each  manned  by  three  men.  The  makayulu  is  not  taken  up 
until  it  has  been  dragged  for  some  time  by  the  accompanying 
canoes. 

(13)  Basoko,  Ikoso.  Same  net  as  the  above,  but  smaller. 
One  man  remains  on  the  bank,  while  another  puts  off  in  a 
canoe  and  spreads  the  net.  After  waiting  a few  minutes  the 
two  fishermen  draw  up  the  net  simultaneously. 


784  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

(14)  and  (15)  Basoko,  Muva  and  Soro ; Bayanzi,  Solo. 
Harpoons  to  spear  big  fish  that  swim  on  the  surface  of  the 
water.  For  this  manner  of  fishing,  as  for  the  preceding  one, 
the  natives  are  in  canoes. 

(16)  Basoko,  Eturu ; Bayanzi,  Lokala.  A long  hurdle 
placed  along  inundated  banks  when  the  waters  are  receding. 
The  purpose  of  this  is  to  prevent  the  fish  from  getting  back  to 
the  river  bed. 

(17)  Basoko,  Lokalo ; Bayanzi,  Likoto.  Rectangular  hurdle 
about  nine  or  sixteen  square  metres.  One  of  the  sides  rests 
against  the  canoe  whilst  the  other  is  slowly  lowered  into  the 
water  by  means  of  a creeper  until  it  is  in  a horizontal  position. 


443.  MASTACEMBELUS  CONGICUS,  AN  EEL-LIKE  FISH  OF  THE  UPPER  CONGO,  GOOD 
TO  EAT,  BUT  REGARDED  BY  THE  NATIVES  AS  A KIND  OF  WATER-SNAKE 

It  is  drawn  up  every  few  minutes.  With  this  apparatus  only 
quite  small  fish  is  caught  on  the  banks  of  the  river. 

(18)  Basoko,  Kesumba ; Bayanzi,  Elubwa.  An  immense 
cone-shaped  net  placed  at  the  mouth  of  rivers,  or  between  two 
beturu  (see  16)  when  the  waters  recede. 

There  are  no  less  than  fifteen  kinds  of  fish  traps  (other  than 
those  mentioned)  in  use  among  the  Bayanzi  and  Bangala. 
Automatic  fish  traps  with  a falling  door  (released  when  the  fish 
nibbles  at  a bait)  are  employed  by  the  Bahuana  on  the  Kwilu 
River.1  4 

The  Bakongo  fish  with  a line  to  which  is  tied  a short, 
straight  piece  of  wood.  This  is  tied  in  such  a way  that  when 

1 Vide  Torday  and  Joyce,  “ Ethnography  of  the  Bahuana.,”  Journal  of  R.  Anthro- 
pological Institute,  1907. 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  785 

the  fish  swallows  it  end  on,  the  wood  at  once  twists  round  cross- 
wise and  cannot  be  ejected.  The  Bakongo  and  other  tribes 
along  the  cataract  Congo  employ  many  kinds  of  fish  baskets, 
traps,  and  weirs,  and  use  hand  nets.  The  basket-work  traps 
(shaped  sometimes  like  the  advertisement  'kiosques  of  Paris) 
used  by  the  Ngombe  (Baati)  people  along  the  western  Mubangi 
are  so  heavy  that  it  takes  two  canoes  lashed  together  to  trans- 
port them.  These  great  basket  traps  are  generally  fixed  at  the 
downward  edge  of  rapids,  making,  in  fact,  a sort  of  fish  weir. 
The  natives  themselves  enter  the  water  at  some  distance  above 
the  weir  and  drive  the  fish  with  shouts  and  drum-beating  to- 
wards the  row  of  baskets. 


444.  LABEO  FALCIFER,  A STRANGE- LOOKING  CARP-LIKE  FISH  FROM  THE  LOWER 
AND  UPPER  CONGO,  WITH  A “DRUNKARD’S  NOSE’5;  REALLY  A NUPTIAL 
ORNAMENT  IN  THE  BREEDING  SEASON 


This  type  is  frequently  caught  in  the  baskets  of  the  weirs. 


Torches  are  also  used  at  night  to  attract  the  fish  to  the 
surface  of  the  water  so  that  they  can  be  speared.  This  practice 
exists  all  along  the  Upper  Congo  between  Stanley  Pool  and 
the  Cameron  Falls,  beyond  Nyangwe. 

Grenfell  seems  to  have  discovered  parts  of  the  central  basin 
of  the  Congo  (the  lower  Lomami,  for  example)  in  1885,  where 
the  Mongo,  Topoke,  or  Pygmy-like  natives  were  living  in  an 
earlier  stage  of  culture  than  that  which  produced  the  canoe. 
“The  natives,”  he  writes,  “of  the  Boloko  (lower  Lomami) 
River  do  not  employ  canoes,  but  rafts  or  catamarans.”  Torday 
also  brings  to  light  the  interesting  fact  that  the  Bakwese — one 
of  the  very  backward  tribes  of  the  Kwango-Kwilu-Kasai 
region — have  no  canoes,  but  use  rafts  instead. 

11. — u 


445-  ADZING  and  finishing  a canoe  at  ilingi  (ngombe  country, 

ON  THE  BANK  OF  NORTHERN  CONGO) 

Elsewhere  in  Congoland,  except  along  the  upper  Mubangi 
River,  the  canoes,  however  long  and  shapely  they  may  be,  are 
nothing  but  hollowed  tree  stems,  with  no  carpentering  or  joinery 
about  them.  The  prow  may  sometimes  be  shaped  into  a long 
beak,  or  even  carved  into  a resemblance  to  a crocodile  or  some 
other  creature.  Probably  the  biggest  canoes  have  been  those 
made  by  the  more  advanced  Ngombe  people  along  the  northern 
bend  of  the  Congo.  But  some  very  fine  canoes  were  formerly 
possessed  by  the  Kongo  people  of  the  Lower  Congo,  some  of 
them  capable  of  seating  sixty  men. 

1 For  appearance,  see  illustration  in  my  book  on  the  Uganda  Protectorate. 


786  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


These  rafts  on  the  lower  Lomami  and  in  South-West  Congo- 
land are  made  apparently  of  bundles  of  reeds  or  papyri,  and 
resemble  in  appearance  similar  rafts  employed  by  the  natives  of 
the  Upper  Nile.1 

But  Grenfell  also  notes  the  peculiar  shape  of  such  canoes  as 
are  in  use  on  the  Lomami  and  perhaps  also  on  the  upper  Juapa. 
These  are  square-ended,  like  the  canoes  of  the  natives  of 
Fernando  Po — a very  interesting  point  of  resemblance,  for 
there  are  features  in  the  Bantu  dialects  of  this  same  region 
which  recall  peculiarities  of  the  Bube  language  of  Fernando  Po. 


HUNTING,  WARFARE,  NAVIGATION  787 

On  the  Mubangi  River,  above  the  Grenfell  Falls,  and  thence 
eastwards  to  the  confluence  of  the  Mbomu,  the  canoes  are 
practically  boats,  and  are  obviously  due  to  northern  Sudanese 
influence.  In  fact,  they  recall  somewhat  similar  boats  in  use 
on  the  upper  Niger.  Between  Mokwangai  and  Banzyville 
the  boats  are  in  the  shape  of  a long  box  ; their  sides  but  little 
raised,  their  bottoms  absolutely  flat,  and  their  general  outline 
rectangular.  The  ends  are  cut  in  long  flat  forms.  The 
planking  of  these  crafts,  being  but  slightly  raised  above  the 
water,  does  not  allow  for  their  being  too  heavily  laden  ; on  the 


446.  MISSION  CANOE,  BOPOTO 


other  hand,  their  shape  causes  them  to  draw  very  little  water. 
They  are  also  admirably  suited  for  the  navigation  of  the  upper 
parts  of  the  Mubangi,  where  they  are  required  to  glide  along  a 
river  whose  depth  at  some  seasons  is  measured  by  inches. 

Above  -Banzyville,  both  on  the  Mubangi- Wele  and  the 
Mbomu,  the  boats  have  very  thick  sides  and  assume  a rounded 
form  similar  to  that  of  an  ordinary  ships  boat.  They  also 
terminate  at  the  stern  in  platforms,  but  these  are  not  so  long, 
having  regard  to  the  various  proportions,  as  those  of  the  flat- 
bottomed  boats  of  the  north-western  Mubangi.  This  arrange- 
ment is  perfectly  adapted  for  rivers  whose  course  abounds  in 
rapids  and  rocks. 

All  the  boats,  flat  or  round,  are  divided  into  a certain 


788  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

number  of  sections,  generally  three  or  four,  by  partitions  four 
to  six  inches  high  from  the  bottom.  These  are  inserted  when 
the  body  of  the  boat  is  first  hollowed  from  a tree  trunk.  The 
bow  of  the  boat,  as  far  as  the  first  partition,  is  reserved  for 
steering,  which  among  the  “Watet”  (water  folk)  of  the  Mubangi 
and  Wele  is  commonly  managed  with  a kind  of  sweep  or  long 
pole-like  oar. 

The  steersmen  or  punters,  provided  with  poles  of  nine  to 
sixteen  or  seventeen  feet,  press  on  the  bottom  of  the  river  and 
push  the  boat  by  walking  along  the  platform  within  the  section 
reserved  for  them.  Small  craft  are  steered  in  this  way  by  a 
single  negro,  but  the  larger  boats  require  at  least  two  punters, 
though  there  is  never  need  for  more  than  three,  in  normal  con- 
ditions.  Besides  men  provided  with  poles,  each  boat  has  a 
crew  furnished  with  little  paddles  of  about  thirty  inches  long. 
These  paddlers  are  placed  in  the  back,  and  direct  and  assist  the 
navigators  in  front. 

Such  mode  of  navigation  is  only  practicable  in  depths  not 
exceeding  nine  or  ten  feet.  In  deep  waters  boats  are  towed  up- 
stream, keeping  very  close  to  the  bank.  The  descent  is  accom- 
plished with  the  paddle  in  mid-river. 

As  regards  paddles,  those  of  the  Lomami  region  appear  to 
be  square-ended,  or  to  be  broad  at  the  ends  and  shaped  into 
one  or  more  short  points.  Sometimes  they  are  tipped  with 
ivory.  The  paddles  along  the  main  course  of  the  Congo  are 
generally  spear-shaped.  The  surface  sometimes  is  very  beauti- 
fully carved,  especially  amongst  the  Ngombe  and  Aruwimi 
peoples. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 


TRADE  AND  CURRENCY 

PERHAPS  trade  began  in  the  Congo  basin,  as  in  the 
development  of  human  intercourse  elsewhere,  by  the 
methods  adopted  at  the  present  day  on  the  part  of 
the  wilder  Pygmies.  These  little  people,  unless  they  are  in 
intimate  relations  with  kindly  big  neighbours  (as  they  are 
in  Bakubaland,  or  among  the  Manbettu  or  Mbuba),  creep  into 
the  banana  plantations  at  night,  or  into  the  maize  fields,  take 
away  as  much  as  they  can  carry,  in  loads  of  plantains  or  of 
corn  cobs,  and  leave  behind  a present  of  game — meat  from  the 
bush  (often  very  high) — which  they  know  will  be  appreciated 
by  the  owner  of  the  plantation  or  cornfield. 

The  latter  winks  at  the  procedure  and  tacitly  accepts  the 
exchange.  Perhaps  in  time  he  gains  the  confidence  of  the  little 
people  (who  if  offended  can  be  nasty  enemies),  and  a more 
direct  system  of  barter  may  spring  up. 

The  Sudanese  or  Bantu  negroes  of  the  Congo  basin  had 
advanced  far  beyond  these  timid,  suspicious  tentatives  of  the 
exchange  of  commodities,  before  the  white  man,  the  Hamite, 
or  the  northern  Moslems  influenced  their  domain.  The  Bantu 
peoples  of  the  south  had  reached  the  great  navigable  reach  of 
the  northern  Congo  below  Stanley  Falls,  had  descended  the 
Lomami,  Lulongo,  Juapa,  Sankuru,  Kasai,  perhaps  from  one  to 
two  thousand  years  ago,  and  sought  to  get  into  touch  with  the 
Sudanese  races,  who  had  equally  found  their  way  from  the 
north  to  the  navigable  waters  of  the  Mubangi,  Mongala,  Rubi, 
and  Lindi.  The  navigable  rivers  became  neutral  ground,  a 
route  whereon  it  was  easier  to  pass  without  undue  risk  of 
molestation  than  was  the  case  with  the  path  through  the  forest, 
marsh,  or  scrub. 

The  Bantu  of  the  south  wanted  iron,  manufactured  into 
weapons  and  implements  ; or  copper,  salt,  brass,  beads,  possibly 
new  domestic  animals  or  vegetable  food-stuffs,  or  even  musical 
instruments.  In  exchange  they  would  bring  slaves  for  those 
who  liked  human  meat ; smoked  fish  for  those  who  dwelt  far 

789 


790  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

away  from  rivers  ; pottery,  if  their  own  indigenous  clays  were 
of  superior  quality  ; kauri  shells  which  they  had  received  from 
the  east,  and  jimbu  shells  which  had  penetrated  Congoland 
from  Angola.  Later  on  (before  the  European  invasion), 
ivory  was  added  to  the  articles  bought  and  sold  on  the  Upper 
Congo;  and  from  the  seventeenth  century  onwards  the  Bantu 
transmitted  to  the  Congolian-Sudanese  beads  from  Europe  or 
Katanga1  [in  exchange  for  the  north  Congo  metal  beads  of  iron 

or  copper],  brass  rods,  tobacco, 
manioc,  maize,  and  European 
cloth  or  calico. 

Gradually,  as  trade  increased 
between  community  and  com- 
munity, certain  always  realizable 
articles  became  regarded  as  a 
sort  of  currency,  because  they 
had  a scarcely  varying  standard 
value.  For  instance,  a slave 
was  always  equal  to  so  many 
pounds  of  meat.  If  he  fell  sick 
and  could  not  work  for  you, 
you  could  eat  him.  An  iron  or 
copper  axe  or  spear-head  could, 
if  it  was  not  required  as  money, 
be  forged  into  a useful  imple- 
ment or  into  an  ornament  ; 
jimbu  or  kauri  shells,  blue 
beads,  shell  beads,  could  be 
worn;  rat  traps  within  a 
reasonable  period  of  time 
were  always  available  for 
catching  rats;  and  the  squares 
of  grass  cloth  could  be  sewn  together  into  garments  or 
mats. 

In  this  last  item  the  Congo  peoples  came  nearest  to  an 
artificial  currency,  practically  of  no  value  at  all,  but  simply  a 
token  ; for  some  of  the  smallest  and  oldest  of  the  grass  mats 
called  dikuta  in  the  western  Congo  became  in  time  a useless 
bundle  of  tangled  hay.  The  oldest  currencies  in  all  prob- 
ability were  the  shell  beads — small  circles  of  fresh-water  oyster 
or  Bulimus  or  Achatina  snail  shell — and  possibly  the  blue  beads 

1 The  Katanga  people  at  an  early  date,  say  some  six  hundred  years  ago,  as  soon 
as  they  were  influenced  by  Hima  metal-working  civilization,  made  blue  beads  out  of 
the  vitreous  substances  in  the  slag  of  their  copper-smelting  furnaces. 


447.  BATEKE  POTTERY,  STANLEY  POOL, 
A GOOD  DEAL  USED  IN  COMMERCE 
QjWITH  THE  NORTHERN  CONGO 


TRADE  AND  CURRENCY 


791 


of  Katanga  and  the  teeth  of  leopards,  wild  pigs,  and  human 
beings,  which  could  be  worn  as  necklaces. 

Then  with  the  increase  of  cannibalism  came  the  exchange 
of  slaves,  and  later,  slaves 
grew  to  be  of  value  for  their 
labour.  A thousand  years 
ago  or  more,  some  faint  im- 
pulse reaching  these  lands 
from  Egypt  [or  possibly  from 
the  Byzantine  commerce  with 
Eastern  Africa]  caused  ele- 
phant tusks  to  become  a 
standard  of  value. 

The  introduction  of  the 
working  of  iron  and  copper 
by  the  Hima  civilization  [and 
at  the  same  time  the  weaving 
of  grass  and  of  palm  filaments] 
brought  about  the  establish- 
ment  of  woven  fabrics,  of 
copper  ingots,1  of  immense 
spear-heads  of  soft  iron 
five  feet  long,  called 
north-east  ngbele ),  and  of 

small  hoe-blades  (now  known  as  shundu  or  shoka , from  the 
Basoko  or  Swahili  words  for  axe),  as  currencies  of  a standard 

value  in  the  east  and  south 
of  Congoland. 

The  trade  with  the  East 
Coast  of  Africa  conducted  by 
pre- Islamic  Arabs  and  incited 
by  Byzantine  traders  intro- 
duced the  kauri  shell  from 
India,  and  kauris  became  not 
only  a favourite  item  in 

44Q.  BATEKE  POTTERY,  STANLEY  POOL  J , • 

(This  and  the  preceding  article  were  at  one  time  much  OmamentS,  but  an  article 
exported  from  the  Bateke  country  to  the  Mubangi  Standard  Value  OVCT 

nearly  all  the  Congo  basin 
except  perhaps  the  innermost  recesses  of  the  Pygmies’  forest. 

Soon  afterwards  arrived  the  black  rat  from  the  valley  of  the 
Nile,  some  time  after  this  rodent  had  reached  Europe  from 
Eastern  Asia ; and  rat  traps  became  so  necessary  that  after  an 


(about 
in  the 


448. 


BATEKE  POTTERY  FROM  NEAR 
STANLEY  POOL 


1 Those  derived  from  the  basin  of  the  upper  Lualaba  are  made  in  the  shape  of 
a St.  Andrew’s  cross.  Until  quite  recently  they  circulated  freely  as  a coin. 


792  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

unknown  genius  had  invented  the  construction  of  them  out  of 
palm  rind,  cane,  or  some  other  elastic  fibre  they  were  easily 
disposed  of  in  all  directions. 

The  Islamic  invasion  of  North-Central  Africa  was  accom- 
panied by  the  introduction  of  brass  to  a limited  extent  in  the 

far  north  of  the 
Congo  basin.  It 
also  increased  the 
spread  of  glass 
beads  from  Egypt 
and  the  Mediter- 
ranean. But  the 
chief  introduction 
of  brass  (during 
the  last  century 
such  an  important 
staple  in  the  com- 
merce of  Congo- 
land)  was  due  to 
the  Portuguese 
settlement  on  the 
west  Congo  coast, 
from  1484  on- 
wards. Brass  in 
the  form  of  rods, 
wire,  or  large- 
headed nails  be- 
came one  of  the 
chief  articles  of 
currency  over  the 
western  two-thirds 
of  the  Congo  basin. 
At  the  same  time 

450.  GRASS-CLOTH  SQUARES  USED  AS  A CURRENCY  ON  ip 

THE  NORTH  BANK  OF  THE  LOWER  CONGO  tile  r OTtUgUeSe  aS- 

sisted  to  spread  the 

use  as  an  ornament  of  the  pretty  little  shell — Olivella  nana — : 
which  is  found  on  one  or  more  of  the  islands  off  the  coast  of 
Angola.  This  is  known  almost  universally  (in  the  plural)  as 
jimbu , and  has  become  a kind  of  currency  not  only  in  Central 
Angola,  but  throughout  much  of  South-West  Congoland.1 

1 Olivella  nana , a pretty  little  greyish-white  spiral  shell,  appears  to  be  native 
to  certain  islands  off  the  coast  of  Angola  and  South-West  Africa.  It  was  specially 
noted  by  Andrew  Battell,  who  visited  these  regions  in  the  sixteenth  century.  Filippo 
Pigafetta,  the  Italiin  who  compiled  a description  of  the  kingdom  of  Kongo  from  the 
discourses  of  Duarte  Lopes,  a Portuguese  (1588),  alludes  to  these  jimbu  shells  as 


TRADE  AND  CURRENCY  793 

Salt  very  early  became  an  article  of  well-defined  value, 
a currency,  in  Congoland,  as  it  did  throughout  the  rest  of  negro 
and  negroid  Africa.  Amongst  no  division  of  the  human  genus 
has  salt  been  more  eagerly  craved  for  than  with  the  negro  and 
negroid,  and  the  desire  for  this  condiment  has  played  a very 
great  part  in  provoking  race  movements  in  Africa.  Any  one 
who  has  studied  the  history  of  Guinea,  written  and  unwritten, 
is  aware  of  the  part  played  by  the  salt  mines  of  the  Western 
Sahara  and  Nigerian  Sudan  as  a bait  for  adventurous  tribes, 
conquering  chiefs  and  sultans.  Those  who  could  not  obtain 


451.  NORTHERN  BAMBALA  PURSES  FOR  CARRYING  JIMBU  SHELLS,  MADE  OF 
FIBRE  IN  IMITATION  OF  POTTERY  (S.W.  CONGOLAND) 

ready  access  to  the  mineral  salt  found  in  the  western  Niger 
basin,  had  but  one  idea — to  reach  the  sea-coast  and  make  salt 
out  of  sea-water. 

The  Congo  negroes  had  as  a rule  only  one  means  of  making 
salt,  and  that  was  to  obtain  it  from  the  lye  and  potash  of  certain 
water  plants  [such  as  Pistia  stratiotes ],  grasses,  and  rushes. 
So  far  as  I am  aware,  no  mineral  salt  has  as  yet  been  discovered 
anywhere  in  the  actual  basin  of  the  Congo,  but  mineral  salt 
was  brought  by  commerce  into  Northern  Congoland  a long 

lumache  (snails),  and  says  they  were  gathered  by  women  from  the  gravel  on  the  shores 
of  a small  island  in  Loanda  Bay.  It  is  now  disused  as  a currency  in  Western  Angola, 
but  is  still  in  vogue  on  the  Kwango,  and  thence  eastwards  to  the  Kasai.  Here  it 
meets  the  kauri,  come  from  the  east,  and  the  kauri  shell  is  the  currency  in  Bakuba- 

land. 


794  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  GONGO 


Congo 
It  was 


while  ago,  though  it  did  not  succeed  in  penetrating  far  south- 
wards into  the  forest  region  of  the  Congo.  Extraordinary  to 
relate,  though  considerable  deposits  of  mineral  salt  exist  in  the 
volcanic  lakes  and  lake-basins  of  the  Albertine  Rift  valley,  not 
many  miles  distant  across  the  Semliki  from  the  actual  basin  of 
the  Congo,  the  salt  derived  from  these  deposits  does  not  seem, 
till  within  the  last  ten  years,  to  have  found  its  way  into  the 

Congo  basin,  per- 
haps because  of  the 
formidable  barrier 
of  the 
Forest. 

conveyed  south- 
wards and  east- 
wards into  the 
Tanganyika  and 
Nyamwezi  dis- 
tricts. 

The  principal  re- 
gion for  salt-mak- 
ing within  the 
Congo  basin  lay  to 
the  south-west  of 
Lake  Tanganyika, 
about  the  Mweru 
swamp,  Lake 
Mweru,  the  upper 
Luapula,  and  the 
Zambezi  water- 
parting.  Here 
there  is  a tendency 
in  certain  lakes  to 
be  brackish,  while 
the  water  vegeta- 
tion secretes  a large 
proportion  of  salt 
which  can  be  extracted  by  burning,  soaking,  and  filtering. 
It  was  the  rumoured  abundance  of  salt  in  the  Mweru  region 


452.  EXAMPLES  OF  NATIVE  CURRENCY  ON  UPPER 
CONGO:  (i)  A BRASS  ROD  EQUAL  TO  ABOUT  160 
SMALL  BRASS  RODS  (THIS  AT  ONE  TIME  WAS  THE 
PRICE  OF  A WIFE).  (2)  ORDINARY  BRASS  RODS 
VALUED  AT  FROM  FIVE  TO  TWENTY  TO  THE  FRANC, 
ACCORDING  TO  THE  LOCALITY.  (3)  SPECIMENS  OF 
“SHOKA”  OR  SPEAR-HEAD  MONEY  MADE  OF  IRON 


that  induced  one  of  the  earlier  Lunda  emperors  (a  Mwata 
Yanvo  of  perhaps  two  hundred  years  ago)  to  despatch  an  ex- 
pedition for  the  conquest  of  that  district,  a conquest  which 
has  resulted  in  the  viceroyalty  of  the  Kazembe,  continued  down 
to  this  day. 

When  the  white  man  first  came  to  the  Congo  as  ruler  in 


TRADE  AND  CURRENCY 


795 


1879-85,  the  native  money  or  currency  in  the  region  of  the 
Lower  Congo  (Matadi  to  the  sea)  was  principally  reckoned  in 
“guns,”  i.e.  the  trade  price  of  a gun.  Other  units  of  value 
were  possibly  demijohns  of  rum,  pieces  of  cloth,  or  slaves.  In 
the  Cataract  region,  the  kingdom  of  Kongo  and  the  country 
between  the  Congo  and  the  Kwango,  the  currency  was  in  small 
pieces  of  grass-cloth  (or  cloth  woven  of  banana  or  raphia  fibre), 
coral  beads,  blue  cut-glass  beads,  and  rat  traps. 

Also  in  this  region  and  on  Stanley  Pool,  and  along  the  main 


453.  PROCEEDS  OF  A COLLECTION  AT  A BAPTIST  MISSION  CHURCH  ON  THE 

UPPER  CONGO 

(Taken  especially  to  illustrate  the  brass  rods  which  form  the  native  currency.)  Besides  brass  rods,  the 
offerings  consist  of  an  umbrella,  palm  wine,  cloths,  soap,  and  a few  coins.) 

course  of  the  Congo  as  far  east  as  Stanley  Falls,  and  up  the 
main  courses  of  the  great  tributaries  of  the  Congo,  the  unit  of 
value  was  the  ntaku  or  brass  rod  (plural  : mitaku ),  a thing  in 
shape  very  like  a small  croquet  hoop  or  an  enormous  hairpin. 
[It  usually  arrives  from  Europe  in  coils  of  about  sixty  pounds 
in  weight,  in  thickness  like  a brass  stair-rod.  It  is  then  cut 
into  lengths  of  ten  inches  and  bent  for  convenience  of  trans- 
port.] 

Grenfell  notes  in  his  journal  (April  4 1889)  that,  according 
to  native  tradition,  about  forty  years  before  1889,  there  were  no 
brass  rods  in  circulation  at  Stanley  Pool,  “ Manyanga  metal 


796  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

only”  [ingots  of  copper  obtained  from  the  Cataract  region].  In 
those  happy  days  ten  cakes  of  kwanga  (manioc  paste)  could  be 
bought  for  one  brass  rod.  Gradually  the  equivalent  dropped 
to  five  kwanga  for  one  brass  rod,  and  still  the  price  of  the 
precious  food  rose,  till  in  1889  a cake  of  manioc  paste  cost 
fifteen  brass  rods.1 

The  Bayanzi  use  brass  rods,  salt,  and  olivella  shells  as 
currencies.  On  the  Sanga  River  and  the  lower  Mubangi  the 
currency  is  in  tobacco  leaves.  On  the  upper  Mubangi  it  is  in 


454.  WOMAN  BRINGING  PALM  NUTS  FOR  TRADE,  BOPOTO 


kauri  shells  ( Cyprcea  moneta)  as  far  as  the  sources  of  the 
Wele. 

Kauri  shells  are  also  a common  medium  of  exchange,  a 
small  money  along  the  upper  Kasai  and  on  the  Sankuru  River. 
East  of  the  Sankuru  up  to  Tanganyika  the  copper  ingot  of 
Katanga  (in  the  shape  of  a St.  Andrews  cross)  is  still  in 
voofue.  In  the  Lunda  countries  white  and  red  beads  and  cut- 
glass  beads  are  the  favourite  coin. 

White  and  red  beads  (together  with  brass  rods)  are  (or 
were)  the  established  currency  of  Bopoto,  on  the  northern  bend 
of  the  Congo  In  the  Lokele  country  at  Yakusu  and  south- 

1 At  Bopoto  in  1890  the  price  of  a slave  was  only  two  hundred  brass  rods.  The 
price  of  ivory  was  always  reckoned  in  men  (slaves).  (Grenfell.) 


TRADE  AND  CURRENCY 


797 


wards  from  Stanley  Falls  to  Manyemaland  there  is  a “metal 
money,”  represented  either  by  the  “shoka,”  a narrow,  blunt 
hoe-blade  of  iron  which  is  worth  about  sixpence,  or  the  hand- 
some five-feet-long  ngbele , equivalent  to  about  five  shillings.1 
In  all  this  region  of  the  north-eastern  Congo  these  pieces  of 
iron  circulated  as  cash,  are,  in  fact,  the  beginning  of  a coin 
currency,  have  an  intrinsic  value,  since  they  are  pieces  of  metal 
which  can  be  hammered  into  useful  implements  or  weapons. 
According  to  Grenfell  (writing  in  1903),  these  hoe-  or  axe-blades 
( shoka  is  the  foreign  Swahili  name)  are  made  in  the  Kasongo 
country  to  the  south,  of  native-smelted  iron  in  the  shape  of  a 
broad  spear-head. 

“All  the  smiths  in  the  Stanley  Falls  district  depend  upon  these  in 
making  axes,  knives,  spears,  arrow-heads,  etc.,  and  households  depend 
on  them  as  a market  currency.  All  our  Yakusu  food  for  work-people 
and  children  is  paid  for  with  shokas — three  bundles  of  plantain  = one 
shoka — and  without  these  we  are  in  difficulties  at  once.  When  I was 
at  Yakusu  early  in  the  year  the  stock  was  running  low,  but  we  thought 
the  interruption  of  the  supply  was  only  temporary,  and  that  the  Arabs 
and  others  would  soon  be  coming  along  as  before  to  exchange  their 
shokas  for  cotton  goods,  enamel  ware,  and  such-like  things  which  we 
import  for  exchange  purposes.  As  it  turns  out,  however,  the  new  railway 
to  the  south  is  absorbing  all  the  supply,  and  the  Government  and 
traders  are  being  compelled  to  import  from  Europe.  So  far,  the  most 
popular  substitute  for  the  native-made  article  is  one  cut  from  a rolled 
plate  of  iron  and  not  worked  at  all.  Some  have  been  sent  that  are 
slightly  thicker  in  the  middle  in  imitation  of  the  native  pattern  sub- 
mitted, but  it  has  not  caught  on  at  all,  some  say  because  of  the  rib  in 
the  middle.  I think  the  fault  is  not  with  the  pattern,  but  with  the 
quality  of  the  iron,  the  natives  requiring  an  article  that  will  not  run 
to  slag  into  their  charcoal  pits  as  it  is  being  worked  up.” 

The  shoka  and  ngbele  of  the  north-east  Congo  are  suc- 
ceeded in  the  south  and  east  by  the  copper  ingot  of  Katanga, 
which  extends  its  range  from  western  Tanganyika  to  the  upper 
Kasai.  But  this,  like  nearly  all  the  indigenous  staples  of  value, 
is  giving  way  to  cash  as  a currency  except  in  the  wilder  regions, 
to  the  coins  of  silver  and  copper  introduced  by  the  Belgians, 
Portuguese,  and  British. 

1 I write  under  correction,  but  I believe  the  long  ngbele  spear-blades  come  rather 
from  the  north  or  from  the  west  or  south-west  districts. 


CHAPTER  XXIX 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES 


IT  will  be  evident  from  the  preceding  chap- 
ters that  there  have  been  two  currents  of 
foreign  influence  [independent  of  the  recent 
advance  of  European  and  Arab  ideas]  which 
have  permeated  Congoland  and  raised  most  of 
its  inhabitants  above  the  culture  level  of  the 
Pygmy : that  the  older  (?)  of  these  may  be  called 
the  Hima  or  Bantu  influence,  which  has  pene- 
trated Congoland  from  the  east  and  south-east, 
has  traversed  the  basin  of  the  Kasai,  reached 
thence  to  that  of  the  upper  Zambezi,  and  has 
passed  northwards  through  Angola  and  Kongo 
along  the  Atlantic  coast  towards  the  Gaboon 
and  Southern  Cameroons.  The  other  influence 
may  be  described  as  Sudanian.  It  has  attacked 
Congoland  from  the  north,  from  the  basin  of  the 
Bahr-al-Ghazal  affluents  of  the  Nile,  and  from 
that  of  the  Shari  and  of  the  Benue.  Sudanese 
influence  has  spread  southwards  till  it  has 
reached  the  northern  Upper  Congo  between 
Stanley  Pool  and  Stanley  Falls,  and  has  pene- 
trated westwards  into  the  land  of  the  Bateke 

and  the  territory  of  the 
Fan  tribes  and  of  the  semi- 
Bantu  populations  east  of 
the  Cameroons.  Sudanian 
influence  coming  from  the 
north  met  Bantu  influence 
coming  from  the  south, 
and  the  two  civilizations 
intermingled  in  the  north- 
central  basin  of  the  Congo. 
Both  of  course  were  de- 

45from  theAeaEsNoTko  ms*  rived  from  a common  origin 

-the  valley  of  the  Nile; 


TRICT,  LOWER  ARUWIMI 


798 


456.  NATIVE  IRON 
“ BLOOM  ” FROM 
BANALYA,  MIDDLE 
ARUWIMI  RIVER 
(GRENFELL  COL- 
LECTION) 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES  799 


and  in  their  descent  on  negro  Africa  were  deflected  to  west 
and  east  by  the  Upper  Nile  marshes,  the  Mountains  of  the 
Moon,  the  great  Nile  lakes,  and  the  dense  forests  of  the  north- 
eastern Congo  watershed. 

But  both  ultimately  derived  their  inspiration  from  Egypt,1 


457.  A BAKWESE  MAT  ...FROM  THE  UPPER  KWILU 
(S.W.  CONGOLAND) 

1 M.  Auguste  Chevalier,  in  his  recently'  published  work  V Afrique  Centrale 
Fran^aise  (dealing  with  Congo-Shari-Chad  explorations),  advances  the  theory  that 
the  Sudanian  culture  originated  in  the  Niger  basin,  between  Lake  Chad  and  Sene- 
gambia,  and  thence  travelled  south-east  to  the  Cameroons  hinterland  and  the 
Mubangi-Congo.  Besides  other  evidence  of  the  distinctness  of  Nigerian  civilization 
from  Egyptian  he  instances  the  great  clay  buildings  of  Nigeria  between  the  Niger 
sources  and  the  western  limits  of  the  Chad  region.  He  points  out  that  there  is  no 
connecting  link  of  this  style  of  architecture  in  Bornu,  Wadai  Darfur,  or  Kordofan. 
This  may  be  the  case  ; but  it  is  obvious  to  me  that  the  clay  architecture  of  Nigeria 
only  dates  from  about  the  tenth  and  eleventh  centuries,  and  is  due  to  Libyan-Arab 
influence  from  North  Africa.  Nearly  everything  else  in  the  domestic  animals, 
cultivated  plants,  arts  and  industries,  games,  weapons,  and  musical  instruments  of 
Nigeria  can  be  traced  back  to  Egypt.  (H.  H.  J.) 


8oo  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


though  the  Sudanian  civilization  had  an  important  secondary 
nidus  in  the  Niger  basin  and  owes  some  of  its  elements  to 
Libyan  (Berber  and  Tawareq)  culture.  This,  in  its  turn,  no 
doubt  was  borrowed  from  Egypt,  so  that  Egypt  stands  out 
emphatically  as  the  white  spot  on  the  Dark  Continent,  the 
centre  from  and  through  which  all  pre-European  civilization  has 
been  imported  to  the  negro. 

Metal-working  seems  to  have  reached  Congoland  (perhaps 
between  two  thousand  and  one  thousand  years  ago)  from  the 

north  and  north- 
east. Northern 
Congoland  is  rich 
in  copper  deposits, 
and  these  also  oc- 
cur in  even  greater 
wealth  in  the 
mountain  region 
round  about  the 
upper  Lualaba  and 
Lufira  (Katanga). 
The  smelting  and 
working  of  copper 
was  perhaps  first 
introduced  into  the 
Mubangi  - W ele 
basin  by  negroids 
from  the  Upper 
Nile  and  the  Bahr- 
i al-Ghazal,  who  in 
458.  flour-sifter  (1)  and  basket  (2)  from  san  turn  had  learnt  this 

and  grass  art  from  Egypt. 

Then,  at  a later 

date,  came  the  Hima-Bantu  invasions,  which  will  be  further  al- 
luded to  in  the  chapter  on  languages,  but  which,  so  far  as  the 
Congo  basin  is  concerned,  were  first  of  all  directed  nearly  due 
west  from  the  region  of  Lake  Albert  till  this  impulse  had  actually 
crossed  Africa  to  the  Bight  of  Biafra.  Then  came  another  in- 
vasion along  the  west  and  east  coasts  of  Tanganyika.  By  this 
time  iron-working  had  been  introduced  from  Egypt  via  the  Nile 
and  the  Sudan,  having  been  preceded  by  the  use  of  copper ; 
and  Hima  invaders  like  the  Bakuba,  Basonge,  Baluba  rapidly 
found  their  way  south  to  the  Katanga  region,  and  thence 
obtained  the  copper  which  so  soon  circulated  over  Eastern 
and  Northern  Congoland  as  a currency  in  ingots. 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES 


801 


In  the  Ababua  country,  between  the  Wele  and  the  Rubi 
rivers,  iron  ore  is  found  at  a depth  of  two  or  three  yards  below 
the  surface  of  the  soil.  It  is  smelted  with  charcoal,  several 
pairs  of  bellows  being  used  ; and  the  metal  thus  obtained  is 
beaten  on  a stone  anvil  with  a cylindrical  or  quadrangular  piece 
of  iron.  After  it  has  been  freed  from  its  impurities  it  is 
hammered  by  the  smiths  into  the  required  kind  of  tool  or 
weapon.  The  bellows  are  formed  of  cylinders  made  of  clay 
or  wood,  one  end  of  which  is  covered  with  a loose  skin,  moved 


459.  DRINKING-CUP  MADE  OF  CLOSELY  PLAITED  STRING,  BABUNDA  PEOPLE, 
KWILU  RIVER,  SOUTH-CENTRAL  CONGOLAND  (TORDAY  COLLECTION) 


by  long  wooden  handles  attached  to  the  middle  of  it.  This  is 
in  fact  the  type  of  furnace  and  forge  common  to  all  negro  Africa. 

The  Babongoro  and  Baganjoro  tribes  of  southern  Ababua 
in  the  country  north-west  of  the  Aruwimi  extract  much  iron 
from  the  ground,  smelt  it,  and  export  it  to  other  districts  as 
pig  iron.  In  the  region  of  the  Aruwimi-Congo  confluence  the 
best  smiths  are  the  Lokele.  The  people  of  the  middle  Aruwimi 
are  also  adroit  in  their  handling  of  metals.  Almost  in  every 
place  along  this  river  there  are  forges  for  the  manufacture  of 
iron,  copper,  and  brass  ware.  These  metals  are  made  into 
spears,  knives,  necklaces,  belts,  tools,  bracelets,  dancing  bells, 
hairpins,  various  ornaments,  etc. 


11. — x 


802  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Most  of  this  trade  in  metal  is  carried  on  by  men  ; women 
are  employed  in  making  pottery  or  in  preparing  cordage  for 
nets.  In  certain  Basoko  villages,  iron  and  copper  wares  being 
considered  very  profitable,  are,  to  a certain  extent,  a monopoly 
of  the  chiefs. 

The  Manbettu  smiths  are  very  expert  in  spite  of  the  primi- 
tive condition  of  the 
tools  they  have  at  their 
disposal.  A forge  con- 
sists “of  a pair  of  bel- 
lows which  is  made  of 
two  vessels  of  clay  or 
wood  whose  apertures 
are  closed  by  a piece 
of  loose  skin  or  slightly 
stretched  banana  leaves, 
the  apex  of  which  is 
pierced  by  and  fastened 
to  a vertical  stick  which 
allows  this  covering  to 
be  lowered  or  raised 
alternately  in  such  a 
way  as  to  create  a 
draught  of  wind  aloncr 
the  wooden  or  clay  pipe 
(or  pierced  stone)  which 
starts  from  the  bottom 
of  the  bellows  and  opens 
on  to  the  furnace.” 
(Grenfell.)  Their  anvil 
is  a plain  mass  of  iron 
in  the  shape  of  a huge, 
thick  nail,  fixed  in  the 
460.  luba  cloth  of  raised  pile,  made  from  ground  ; the  hammers 

RAPHIA  - PALM  BAST,  KWILU  RIVER,  S.W.  o olfnrrptbpr  nrimitivp 
CONGOLAND  ell  c cuiugcuici  pi  mu  Live 

and  composed  of  a 
piece  of  gneiss  ; while  a very  fine  flake  of  sandstone  may  serve 
as  a file.1 

These  smiths,  with  tools  thus  elementary,  succeed  by  patience 
and  ingenuity  in  manufacturing  perfect  wire,  rings,  bracelets, 
small  chains  of  very  fine  mesh,  etc.,  of  really  remarkable  work. 
Copper  and  brass  are  worked  in  the  same  fashion. 


1 Whetstones  on  which  knives,  swords,  axes,  and  smith’s  implements  are  sharpened 
are  obtained  from  the  banks  of  the  Aruwimi,  Wele,  Rubi,  and  Lomami  rivers. 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES 


803 


Copper  is  much  esteemed  by  the  natives  of  Bopoto.  They 
hold  to  a certain  extent  the  monopoly  of  the  manufacture  of 
copper  necklets,  bracelets,  chains,  etc.  Their  work  on  the 
metal  is  very  skilful,  and  the  results  they  obtain  are  astonish- 
ing, considering  the  primitive  tools  at  their  disposal.  Their 
forges  are  the  same  as  those  of  the  Bangala,  and  almost 

identical  with 
the  Manbettu 
forge  above 
described. 

“ The  Aba- 
bua  of  the  Wele 
make  excellent 
‘eyed’  iron 
needles  like 
those  of  a sail- 
maker.”  (Tor- 
day.) 

The  Kongo 
people,  to  the 
south  of  the 
Lower  Congo, 
were  workers  of 
iron  when  first 
discovered  by 
the  Portuguese 
at  the  end  of 
the  fifteenth 
century,  but  to 
no  very  great 
extent.  Ap- 
parently they 
had  developed 
but  little  art  or 
industry  in  that 
connection  as 

compared  with  the  metal-workers  of  the  south-centre  (Bakuba, 
Baluba,  etc.).  It  is  possible  that  the  Bakongo  and  the  cognate 
tribes  may  have  received  their  limited  knowledge  of  metal- 
working from  the  north,  through  the  Bateke,  the  Bateke  having 
been  impregnated  with  a Sudanian  culture,  rather  than  with 
that  emanating  from  the  Hima  of  the  south-centre.1 

O 


461.  SPECIMEN  OF  BAKUBA  CLOTH  (SANKURU  RIVER), 
WITH  RAISED  PILE 


1 We  know  that  soon  after  the  Portuguese  discovery  of  the  Kongo  kingdom,  the 
Makoko  or  principal  chief  of  the  Bateke  was  a powerful  personage  in  the  region  to 


804  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


But  the  civilization  of  the  Kongo  kingdom  in  nearly  all  its 
aspects,  including  its  language,  was  mainly  due  to  the  Hima 
influence  travelling  westwards  across  the  upper  Kasai  to  the 
upper  Kwango,  and  thence  down  that  river  and  across  to  the 
Con^o  in  its  cataract  region.  From  thisdirection  came  the  hunter- 

o o 


aristocracy  with  the  iron  spears  and  an  elementary  knowledge 

of  metal  - working 
which  founded  the 
Kongo  kingdom 

o # 

and  civilization,  an 
influence  that  ex- 
tended to  the  sea- 
coast  and  north- 
wards to  Luango. 
Here  it  met  two 
branches  of  industry 
and  culture  : one, 
that  of  the  West 
Coast  of  Africa, 
travelling  south- 
wards  from  Benin 
and  the  lower  Niger ; 
and  the  other  that 
Sudanian  influence 
which  had  trickled 
through  the  semi- 
Bantu  populations 
at  the  back  of  the 
Cameroons  to  the 
Ogowe  River. 

The  Hima  influ- 
ence brought  with 
it  the  use  of  iron 
implements  to  the 
Kongo  people  and 
those  of  Angola ; 
but  I am  inclined 


462.  BAPINDI  PILE  CLOTH,  S.W  CONGOLAND 
(TORDAY  COLLECTION) 


the  north  of  Stanley  Pool,  and  that  a considerable  development  of  Bateke  culture  had 
taken  place  in  that  region,  extending  southwards  to  the  large  island  on  Stanley  Pool. 
It  is  probable,  however,  that  the  mass  of  the  Bantu-speaking  Bateke  came  from  the 
south-east,  from  that  congeries  of  tribes  between  the  Kwango,  Kwilu,  and  Kasai 
whose  worn-down  dialects  at  the  present  day  offer  a slight  resemblance  to  the  Teke 
language,  though  this  last  belongs  in  the  main  to  what  I have  styled  the  First  In- 
vasion. The  original  “ Bateke  ” were  probably  Pygmies  who— as  has  occurred  fre- 
quently in  other  parts  of  the  Congo  basin — passed  on  their  name  to  their  big  Bantu 
conquerors. 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES 


to  think  that  it  had  been  preceded,  as  regards  the  estab- 
lishment of  an  age  of  copper , by  the  civilization  of  the 
Sudan  passing  south-westwards  through  the  regions  of  the 
upper  Ogowe.  Copper  was  early  in  use  in  the  region  im- 
mediately north  of  cataract  Congo  (Manyanga).  Here  it  was 
cast  into  ingots  about  four  inches  long  and  three-quarters  of  an 
inch  thick.  In 
this  form  it 
was  one  of  the 
orioinal  arti- 

o 

cles  of  trade 
between  the 
Bakongo  and 
Babwende,  on 
the  one  hand, 
and  the  Bateke 
and  Bayanzi 
on  the  other. 

In  the  mo- 
dern Konoro 

o 

language,  a 
blacksmith  or 
worker  in 
metal  is  styled 
n g an  g u l a , 
which  seems 
to  be  an  ex- 
tension of  the 
word  ngangu , 
meaning,  ac- 
cording to 
Holman  Bent- 
ley, “sharp- 
ness, cunn- 

r.  . 463.  FINELY  WOVEN  CLOTH  FROM  1 HE  NORTHERN  LUBA 

mg,  crait,  art,  country  (kasai-lulua) 

subtlety,  arti- 
fice, sagacity,  etc.”  And  this  word  again  is  probably  only  a 
variant  of  the  widespread  Bantu  root  nganga  = doctor,  sorcerer, 
medicine-man. 

It  is  interesting,  however,  to  note  that  the  Bateke  word  for 
“to  forge”  is  tsula , closely  akin  to  the  -tula  of  South-Central 
Congoland  (Baluba),  while  the  Kongo  word  also  for  the  same 
thing  is  -ftda. 

The  knowledge  of  metal-working  amongst  the  Bayaka 


806  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


seems  to  have  come  from  the  north  (from  the  Bateke,  perhaps). 
The  same  report  is  given  by  all  the  tribes  from  Damaraland  on 
the  south-west  to  the  Bahuana  and  Bambala  on  the  north-east, 
except  in  the  case  of  the  Lunda  and  Kioko,  who  trace  their 
smiths  work  to  the  east  [Lubaland].  The  Bayanzi  brought 

the  use  of  metals  and  spears 
to  the  tribes  along  the  lower 
Kasai,  probably  from  contact 
with  the  Bakuba  and  Basongo. 

Nowhere  in  the  Congo 
basin  except  in  the  extreme 
south-east  and  south  does 
there  seem  to  have  been  any 
spinning  and  weaving  of  cotton. 
On  the  Nyasa  - Tanganyika 
plateau  the  loom  and  the  use 
of  cotton  have  long  been  in 
existence  — perhaps  for  five 
hundred  years ; but  both  owe 
their  introduction  to  Arab  in- 
fluence from  the  Zanzibar  coast. 
In  the  extreme  north  of  the 
Congo  basin  the  Nyamnyam 
may  have  introduced  the  art  of 
weaving,  and  may  possibly 
have  used  cotton  as  the  staple  ; 
but  so  far  as  researches  go, 
looms  and  weaving  were  a 
Bantu  introduction  brought  by 
the  Hima  invaders  from  the 
north-east  and  east ; and  they, 
like  the  Bakuba,  Baluba,  and 
kindred  tribes  of  the  present 
day,  right  away  to  the  Kongo 
countries  and  Angola,  only 
used  banana  fibre,  palm  bast, 
or  grass  for  their  staple. 

An  earlier  art,  as  already 
indicated,  was  the  felting  of  the  bast  from  fig  trees  and  the 
using  of  this  for  covering  purposes.  The  use  of  fig-bast  felted 
cloth  has  been  almost  universal  at  one  time  or  another  over  the 
whole  of  tropical  Negroland,  from  Mozambique  on  the  south- 
east to  the  lands  of  Guinea  on  the  north-west. 

The  plaiting  of  split  cane  or  bamboo,  of  the  rind  of  palm 


464.  A WOODEN  STATUETTE  FROM  KABINDA, 
NEAR  THE  MOUTH  OF  THE  CONGO 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES 


807 


midribs,  of  dry  reeds,  grass,  fibre, 
or  string — basket  and  mat  making, 
in  fact — is  of  course  a much 
earlier  art  than  weaving  with  the 
mechanical  loom,  of  which  it  is 
the  parent.  Mat  and  basket 
making  no  doubt  dates  back  to 
a very  remote  period  in  the 
Congo  basin,  and  exists  amongst 
the  few  industries  indigenous  to 
Fernando  Po.  It  is  almost  uni- 
versal over  the  Congo  basin, 
though  carried  on  with  much 
more  art  in  the  south-centre  and 
east  than  elsewhere.  The  plaiting 
of  these  materials  is  also  a means 
of  making  fish  traps,  baskets, 
vessels  of  every  description,  hats, 
shields,  and  even  sandals,  in  the 
rare  instances  where  sandals 
are  worn.  Some  of  the  string 
basket-work  is  so  fine  (though 
done  by  hand),  the  mesh  is  so 
close,  that  the  receptacle  thus 
woven  will  hold  water,  especially 
when  it  has  received  an  interior 
coat  of  resin.  Some  of  these 
baskets  or  vases  were  formerly 
smeared  with  red  clay  or  kaolin 
on  the  outside,  and  thus  could 
stand  moderate  heat  in  the  em- 
bers of  a fire  and  so  warm  the 
liquid  held  within.  It  was  thus 
that  pottery  came  into  existence 
— independently,  in  several 
different  centres  of  culture,  in 
Asia,  Europe,  America,  and 
Africa. 

The  large,  coarsely  woven 
mats  of  the  Bakuba  are  often 
so  beautiful  in  design  and  so 
strong  that  they  are  almost  worth 
exportation  to  Europe.  The 
Mabenja  of  the  Lulu-Aruwimi 


465.  (i)  A THICK  RECTANGULAR  STICK 
OF  WHITE  WOOD,  ABOUT  4 FEET 
LONG  AND  4 INCHES  BROAD 
The  handle  contains  a small  fragment  of  glass 
bead  fitted  in  as  an  ornament.  The  black 
figures  in  relief  on  the  white  ground  evidently 
tell  a story.  This  comes  from  the  Cataract 
region  of  the  Congo. 

(2)  ANOTHER  PICTURE  STICK,  THIN- 
NER AND  MORE  SLAB-LIKE  THAN 
THE  PRECEDING 


808  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


country  are  remarkably  deft  in  the  plaiting  of  small  bonnets  or 
caps  of  straw,  rushes,  or  palm  fibre.  So  also  are  the  Ababua 
farther  north,  who  make  among  other  basket-work  articles 
very  artistic  sheaths  for  spear-heads.  The  Lohali  of  the  middle 
Aruwimi  work  (unlike  other  Congo  tribes)  in  leather,  construct- 
ing handsome  belts  and  shoulder-straps  and  bandoliers  out  of 
leopard  skin,  the  striped  hide  of  the  okapi,  or  of  the  Bongo 
tragelaph.  But  they  also  vie  with  the  Mabenja  in  the  delicacy 
and  beauty  of  their  straw  or  fibre  plaiting,  making  fanciful 
sheaths  for  their  knives,  and  skull  caps  of  a softness  and 
delicacy  approaching  that  of  China  silk.  They  also  plait  or 


466.  NATIVE  BOY  WHO  HAS  MADE  A MODEL  OF  A RIVER  STEAMER,  BOPOTO 

weave  the  foundations  of  wigs  covered  with  monkey  skin,  often 
displaying  wonderful  skill  in  the  arrangement  of  partings  and 
in  fit.  Beneath  the  skull  cap  or  the  wig,  as  the  case  may  be, 
the  hair  is  plastered  with  oil  and  clay  to  a firm,  solid  mass. 
The  chiefs  and  notables  wear  high,  mitre-shaped  hats  of  the 
finest  basket-work,  painted  with  the  traditional  design  of  eight 
red  diamonds. 

Basket-making  is  well  developed  in  the  Kongo  kingdom 
and  in  the  Kwango-Kwilu-Kasai  countries.  It  is  somewhat 
neglected  amongst  the  riverain  peoples  of  the  northern 
Congo,  who  devote  their  energies  rather  to  the  manu- 
facturing  of  pottery  or  fishing-nets.  But  it  is  an  art  possessed 
by  all  the  Congolese  in  greater  or  less  degree  except  the 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES  809 

Pygmies,  who  are  represented  by  a minus  in  nearly  all  these 
categories. 

As  to  the  “ bast  ” or  fibre  of  the  raphia  palm  about  which  so 
much  has  been  said  in  reference  to  native  industries  : The 
method  of  procuring  it  is  to  cut  off  a bunch  of  young  raphia 
fronds  before  the  petioles  have  separated.  With  a sharp  knife 
the  outer  rind  or  skin  of  the  leaf  is  stripped  off.  Apparently  it 
separates  easily  from  the  under  surface.  These  long  filaments 
are  dried  in  the  sun,  and  look  very  like  the  “ bast  ” which  we 
employ  in  gardening  for  tying  up  plants.  The  raphia  palm  also 


467.  MODEL  OF  A HOUSE  MADE  BY  A NATIVE  BOY  AT  BOPOTO 


yields  a stiff  cane-like  fibre  (the piassava  of  commerce)  which  is 
exceedingly  useful  in  basket-work. 

Carpentering , in  unadulterated  negro  Africa,  has  never 
included  anything  in  the  nature  of  joinery , neither  has  any 
negro  tribe  uninfluenced  by  the  European  or  the  Asiatic  used  a 
saw.  Carpentering  began — and  has  almost  remained  in  that 
condition  in  Congoland — with  the  attempt  to  hew  the  desired 
object  out  of  a block  of  wood.  In  this  way — with  great 
foresight  and  ingenuity — the  Congo  people  make  canoes,  chairs, 
stools,  snuff-boxes,  powder-flasks,  cups,  wooden  bells  or  gongs, 
masks,  head-rests,  spoons,  and  many  domestic  utensils.  Seats 
or  back-rests  are  sometimes  made  by  the  adaptation  of  a many- 


8io  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


branched  tree  stem  (see  p.  758).  The  nearest  approach  to 
joinery  is  the  making  of  boxes  out  of  strips  of  thick  bark.  No 
nails  or  glue  are  employed,  but  where  necessary  the  edges  are 
fastened  together  by  the  drilling  of  holes  and  the  tying  of 
leather  thongs  or  string  made  of  vegetable  fibre. 

The  Lohali  are  particularly  clever  in  the  utilization  of 
these  slabs  of  bark.  This  artistic  Aruwimi  tribe  further  orna- 
ments its  bark  chests  or  boxes  with  string  embroidery.  The 
same  practice  occurs  among  the  Ba-huana  of  the  far  distant 
Kwilu  River. 


468.  NATIVE  POTTERY  DRYING  IN  THE  SUN,  BOPOTO,  NORTHERN  CONGO 


There  is  a strong  artistic  impulse  throughout  all  Congoland, 
except  perhaps  amongst  the  Pygmies,  an  impulse  which  might 
lead  these  people  far  in  adding  to  the  world’s  store  of  beautiful 
designs  and  inventions,  if  only  it  receives  an  intelligent  en- 
couragement from  a kindly  administration.  On  the  West 
Coast  it  has  been  slightly  influenced  by  European  culture — very 
slightly,  however.  Some  of  the  examples  here  given  [the 
originals  of  which,  collected  in  some  cases  by  the  Baptist 
missionaries,1  are  in  the  British  Museum  or  the  Congo  Museum 
at  Tervueren]  will  illustrate  the  strong  feeling  for  design  and 

1 Some  of  the  earlier  collections  and  photographs  of  Bentley,  Grenfell,  and 
William  Forfeitt  went  to  Brussels  in  connection  with  the  Congo  Exhibition  of  1895. 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES  811 

colour  on  the  part  of  the  natives  of  the  Congo  coast-lands. 
Here  even  they  seem  to  have  developed  a certain  degree 
of  picture-writing,  as  also  in  the  Luango  regions  further 
to  the  north.  The  carved  ivories,  similar  to  those  of  Benin 
art,  are  intended  to  tell  stories  and  to  point  morals.  In 
the  Congo  coast  region,  long,  flat  pieces  of  wood  are 
carved  in  relief,  with  figures  of  men  and  animals  arranged 
conventionally  to  express  some  sentiment  or  to  place  some 
fact  or  legend  on  record.  We  are  here  on  the  verge  of 

o o 


469.  BURNING  AND  GLAZING  POTTERY,  BOPOTO 

hieroglyphics  and  picture-writing,  by  an  independent  inven- 
tion of  the  human  mind. 

Many  of  the  North  Congoland  tribes  paint  the  exterior  or 
interior  of  their  house  walls  with  more  or  less  conventional 
designs  of  animals  or  geometrical  figures,  among  which  the 
Maltese  cross  and  St.  Andrew’s  cross  or  X predominate. 

The  Baluba  and  Bakuba  peoples  of  the  south-centre  are 
steeped  in  artistic  feeling,  which  finds  its  expression  in  the 
carving  of  masks  out  of  solid  blocks  of  wood,  exquisite  iron 
metal-work  (such  as  may  be  seen  in  their  axes),  the  beautiful 
patterns  of  their  pile  cloths,  and  the  fantastic  designs  and  colora- 
tion of  their  pottery.  How  one  would  like  to  found  a mission 
for  the  development  of  design  and  of  the  colour  sense  in  such  a 


8 1 2 GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


region  as  this,  to  have  the  health,  strength,  and  unity  of  purpose 
simply  to  train  these  deft-handed  Bakuba  and  Baluba  and 
Aruwimi  peoples  to  develop  a School  of  Art  of  their  own,  and 
thus  to  enrich  the  world’s  all  too  small  store  of  beautiful  objects! 
I have  often  felt  the  same  with  regard  to  the  Baganda.  Under 
an  intelligent  instruction,  the  Baganda  might  rival  the  Japanese, 
not  only  in  natural  politeness  (as  they  do  already),  but  in  a 
sense  of  beauty  and  the  application  of  a wholly  original  art  to 
all  the  surroundings  of  their  lives.  Can  there  be  any  surer  road 
to  earthly  happiness  ? 

There  is  no  such  thing  throughout  Congoland  as  the  potter  s 

wheel.  All  pottery  is  made  by  hand, 
and  the  women  are  usually,  almost 
invariably,  the  potters.1 

This  art  also  has  owed  a great 
deal  to  Sudanese  influence  coming 
from  the  north.  The  pottery  of  North 
Congoland  (especially  that  of  the  Aru- 
wimi) is  possibly  superior  in  beauty 
of  design  and  colouring  to  that  of  the 
south.  The  pottery  of  the  centre  is 
poorly  developed,  as  is  also  the  case 
with  the  backward  tribes  of  the 
Kwango- Kwilu- Kasai  region.  Beauti- 
ful  and  elaborate  designs  and  careful 
choice  of  colours  and  materials  again 
make  their  appearance  in  the  ceramics 
of  the  western  Congo  and  in  the 
Atlantic  coast  region,  though  this  artistic  development  is  by  no 
means  universal  up  and  down  the  Atlantic  coast  of  South-West 
Africa.  It  does  not  extend  far  southwards  into  Angola,  nor  does 
it  reach  the  Gaboon  and  Cameroons  [except  in  the  far  interior 
of  the  Cameroons,  where  the  pottery  is  obviously  of  Sudanese 
designs].  Perhaps  it  was  the  early  Portuguese  influence  over 
the  Congo  coast  that  brought  about  this  artistic  development 
in  pottery  which  is  so  splendidly  illustrated  in  the  work  pub- 
lished by  the  Congo  State  Museum  at  Tervueren.2 

In  the  pottery  of  the  western  Congo  and  Mubangi,  the 
effect  of  a black  “glaze  ” is  sometimes  given  by  the  application 

1 Just  as  it  is  nearly  exclusively  the  man’s  function  to  ply  the  needle.  Women 
are  assigned  agriculture , ceramics , cookery , to  some  extent  medicine , as  their  special 
sphere  ; while  manly  occupations  are  sewing , weaving , basket-making , metal-work- 
ing,, hunting , warfare , and  canoe-making. 

2 La  Ceramique.  Serie  III,  Ethnographic  et  Anthropologie.  Annales  du  Musee 
du  Congo.  Tervueren,  Brussels. 


470.  POT  FROM  THE  CONG 
COAST  REGION  OF  MA- 
YUMBE,  WITH  BLACKISH 
LUSTRE 


ARTS  AND  INDUSTRIES 


813 

of  charcoal,  of  vegetable  dyes,  or  of  a ferruginous  compound 
mixed  with  oil,  which,  when  the  pot  is  cooling,  is  applied  to  the 
surface  and  afterwards  polished  by  the  application  of  a smooth 
shell  or  some  other  very  hard,  smooth  substance.  These  effects 
of  glaze  are  never  attained  in  Congoland  or  negro  Africa  by 
that  higher  art  in  ceramics,  the  fusing  by  great  heat  of  vitreous 
matter.  It  is  ordinarily  by  the  application  of  native  copal 
varnish,  gum  elemi,  or  some  other  gum  or  resin — smeared  over 
the  clay  when  the  vessel  issues  from  the  furnace  nearly  red-hot 
— that  the  handsome  brown,  red,  purple  glazes  on  the  north 
and  west  Congo  pottery  are  produced.  The  clay  has  probably 
(before  baking)  been  painted  with  some  colouring  matter — the 
indigo  sap  of  the  Randia,  the  Nkula  camwood  dye,  etc.  The 
varnish  smeared  over  this  (or  an  external  coating  of  palm  oil) 
will  not  only  give  the  effect  of  a glaze,  but  may  somewhat 
mitigate  the  porosity  of  the  clay. 

Copal  gum  is  said  to  be  burnt  (?  in  torches)  by  the  Congo 
negroes  when  they  need  more  illumination  at  night  than  can  be 
obtained  by  blowing  up  the  fire  or  lighting  a strand  of  dry  grass 
or  a bundle  of  canes.  It  is  curious  that  nowhere  except  perhaps 
in  the  Atlantic  coast  region  influenced  by  the  Portuguese,  or 
(recently)  in  the  eastern  province  under  Arab  civilization,  does 
the  Congo  negro  use  anything  in  the  shape  of  a lamp,  abun- 
dantly as  his  country  is  supplied  with  oils. 

Small  iron  lamps,  however,  singularly  like  in  design  the 
clay  lamps  of  the  Mediterranean  world  in  classical  times,  exist 
among  the  Bali  and  Baya  peoples  in  the  eastern  hinterland  of 
the  Cameroons  and  at  the  head-waters  of  the  Sanga  River. 
These  no  doubt,  together  with  crossbow,  musical  instruments, 
and  other  types  of  culture,  have  been  introduced  from  the  upper 
Benue  or  the  Central  Sudan.  The  oil-lamp  is  as  foreign  to 
negro  culture  as  the  plough,  the  saw,  the  potter’s  wheel,  glazed 
pottery,  joinery,  and  stone-masonry. 


CHAPTER  XXX 


TRADITIONS,  STORIES,  FOLKLORE 

AFEW  examples  of  the  traditions,  legends,  and  beast 
stories  of  Congoland  are  given  in  the  following  pages. 
Here  is  a Bangala  tradition  collected  by  Grenfell  in 

1890  : — 

“ The  natives  at  Equator  Station  have  a legend  as  to  the  origin  of 
death,  which  in  some  measure  is  analogous  to  the  Mosaic  account.  The 
natives  say  that  in  the  beginning  men  and  women  did  not  die,  that 
one  day  Nza  Komba  (God)  came  bringing  two  gifts,  a large  and  a small 
one.  If  they  chose  the  smaller  one  they  would  continue  to  live,  but  if 
the  larger  one,  they  would  for  a time  enjoy  much  greater  wealth,  but 
they  would  afterwards  die.  The  men  said  they  must  consider  the 
matter,  and  went  away  (to  drink  water,  as  the  Kongos  say) ; but  while 
they  were  discussing  the  matter  the  women  took  the  larger  gift,  and 
Nza  Komba  went  back  with  the  little  one.  He  has  never  been  seen 
since,  though  they  cried  and  cried  for  Him  to  come  back  and  take  the 
big  bundle  and  give  them  the  little  one,  and  with  it  immortality.” 

The  southern  Baluba  of  the  middle  Kasai  explain  the 
marring  of  the  original  scheme  of  creation  by  the  following 
story  (taken  down  by  Father  Colie,  a Belgian  missionary)  : — 

“ God  (. Kabezya-mpungu ) created  the  sun,  moon,  and  stars,  then 
the  world,  and  the  plants,  animals,  etc.  When  all  this  was  finished  He 
placed  a man  and  two  women  in  the  world  and  taught  them  the  name 
and  use  of  all  things.  He  gave  an  axe  and  a knife  to  the  man,  and 
taught  him  to  cut  wood,  weave  stuffs,  melt  iron,  and  to  hunt  and  fish, 
etc.  To  the  women  he  gave  a pickaxe  and  a knife,  and  taught  them 
to  till  the  ground,  make  pottery,  weave  baskets,  make  oil,  etc.,  that  is 
to  say,  all  that  custom  assigns  to  them  to-day. 

“ These  first  inhabitants  of  the  earth  lived  happily  for  a long  time, 
until  one  of  the  women  began  to  grow  old  ; but  God,  foreseeing  this, 
had  given  her  the  gift  of  rejuvenating  herself,  and  the  faculty,  if  she 
once  succeeded,  of  preserving  the  gift  for  herself  and  for  all  mankind. 
Unfortunately  she  speedily  lost  the  precious  treasure,  and  introduced 
death  into  the  world.  This  is  how  the  misfortune  occurred.  Seeing 
herself  all  withered,  the  woman  took  the  fan  with  which  her  companion 
had  been  winnowing  maize  for  the  manufacture  of  beer,  and  shut  herself 
into  her  hut,  carefully  closing  the  door.  There  she  began  to  tear  off 

814 


TRADITIONS,  STORIES,  FOLKLORE  815 

her  old  skin,  throwing  it  on  the  fan;  the  skin  came  off  easily,  a new  one 
appearing  in  its  place.  The  operation  was  nearing  completion,  there 
remained  the  head  and  neck  only,  when  her  companion  came  to  the 
hut  to  fetch  her  fan,  and  before  the  old  woman  could  speak  pushed 
open  the  door,  when,  alas ! the  almost  rejuvenated  woman  fell  dead 
instantly.  This  is  the  reason  we  all  die.  The  two  survivors  gave  birth 
to  a number  of  sons  and  daughters,  from  whom  all  races  have  descended. 
Since  that  time  God  does  not  trouble  about  His  creatures ; He  is  satis- 
fied with  visiting  them  incognito  now  and  again,  and  then  wherever  He 
passes  the  ground  sinks.  He  injures  no  one,  it  is  therefore  superfluous 
to  honour  him ; so  the  Baluba  offer  no  worship  to  Him.” 


The  negroes  of  Congoland  (as  elsewhere  in  Africa)  take 
surprisingly  little  notice  of  the 
heavenly  bodies  or  phenomena  of 
the  skies , at  any  rate  so  far  as  re- 
corded stories  or  traditions  £0. 

Among  the  Bakongo  the  planets 
(Venus  and  Jupiter  at  any  rate) 
are  regarded  as  the  spouses  of  the 
Moon.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
Bangala  believe  the  Sun  to  be  the 
lover  of  the  Moon,  whom  he  is 
continually  pursuing  across  the 
sky.  On  the  rare  occasions  on 
which  he  catches  her  there  is  an 
eclipse.1 

The  Azande  (Nyamnyam)  have 
the  following  legend  as  to  the 
phases  of  the  moon  : — 

An  old  man  saw  the  body  of  a 
dead  man  on  which  was  fallino-  the  liorht  of  the  moon  which  was 
lying  hard  by  on  the  ground,  having  fallen  from  the  skies.  He 
gathered  together  a great  number  of  animals  and  said  to  them, 
“ Which  of  you,  my  friends,  is  willing  to  take  up  the  task  of  con- 
veying the  dead  man  or  the  moon  on  to  the  other  bank  of  the 
river?”  Two  tortoises  came  forward:  the  one,  who  had  long 
feet,  took  the  moon  and  arrived  safe  and  sound  with  it  on  the 
opposite  side  ; the  other,  who  had  short  feet,  carried  away  the 


471.  POT  FROM  THE  COAST  REGION 
OF  MAYUMBE 


1 Mr.  Torday  gives  nearly  the  same  story  as  the  English  missionaries  (I  believe 
from  a Belgian  source)  : — 

“ The  Stars,  the  Sun,  and  the  Moon. — The  Bangala  believe  that  the  stars  are  the 
slaves  of  the  Moon.  The  Sun  is  in  love  with  the  Moon.  Transported  with  passion, 
he  unceasingly  pursues  his  well-beloved,  but  only  rarely  succeeds  in  assuaging  his 
burning  flame  in  the  embraces  of  his  beautiful  mistress. 

“ When  the  Moon  receives  the  Sun  and  the  two  lovers  forget  themselves  in  their 
duet,  the  sky  becomes  overcast,  and  darkness  conceals  their  amours.  (This  is 
evidently  a reference  to  an  eclipse.)” 


816  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


dead  man,  but  was  drowned.  For  this  reason  the  dead  moon 
reappears  every  month,  but  man  when  he  is  dead  never  returns. 

The  Bahuana  of  the  Kwilu  basin  (and  several  other  Congo 
tribes)  believe  that  rainbows  are  great  snakes  living  in  the 
water.  When  they  have  eaten  enough  fish  they  occasionally 
come  out  for  a change,  and  may  then  be  seen. 

Mr.  R.  E.  Dennett  in  his  work  At  the  Back  of  the  Black 
Mans  Mind  gives  a good  deal  of  information  about  the  rain- 
bow legends  of  the  Bavili,  the  northern  branch  of  the  Kakongo 
people  on  the  Atlantic  coast.  They  likewise  believe  the  rain- 
bow to  be  a many-coloured  snake. 

There  are  many  legends  in  the  far  north-east  and  east  of 

Congoland  among  the  Baamba,  Ba- 
konjo,  Manyema,  Balega,  Bahima, 
Barundi,  and  other  Bantu  tribes  living 
in  or  near  the  Albertine  Rift  valley, 
between  Tanganyika  and  Lake  Al- 
bert, which  point  to  remembrances 
of  past  seismic  disturbances  on  a 
considerable  scale.  Both  Cameron 
and  Stanley  have  reported  native 
legends  as  to  the  origin  of  Lake  Tan- 
ganyika.  Here  is  another  version, 
told  by  a Belgian  missionary. 

“ Long,  long  ago,  in  the  region  where 
you  see  the  lake,  there  stretched  a vast 
plain  inhabited  by  many  tribes  who  pos- 
sessed great  herds  of  oxen  and  goats. 

“ In  this  plain  was  a very  large  village. 
As  was  the  custom  in  those  days,  all  the 
houses  of  this  village  were  surrounded  by 
tall  hedges  containing  stalls  where  people 
drove  in  their  cattle  for  the  night  to  preserve  them  from  wild  beasts  and 
robbers. 

“In  one  of  these  enclosures  there  lived  with  his  wife  a man  who 
owned  a deep  spring  which  fed  a pretty  streamlet. 

“ This  spring,  strange  to  say,  contained  innumerable  fish  which 
supplied  the  man  and  his  wife  with  abundance  of  food ; but  as  the 
possession  of  this  treasure  depended  on  the  most  absolute  secrecy,  no 
one  outside  the  family  circle  had  any  knowledge  of  it.  A tradition 
handed  down  from  father  to  son  said  that  the  day  when  the  spring 
should  be  revealed  by  one  of  them  to  strangers,  the  family  would  be 
ruined  and  destroyed. 

“ But  it  happened,  unknown  to  the  husband,  that  the  wife  loved 
another  man,  and  her  passion  increasing,  she  secretly  brought  him 
some  fish  from  the  wonderful  spring.  The  flesh  was  so  good  and  of 
such  an  unaccustomed  flavour  that  her  lover  wanted  to  know  whence 


472.  AN  ORNAMENTAL  WATER- 
POT  OF  THE  AZANDE,  FROM 
THE  UPPER  WELE 


TRADITIONS,  STORIES,  FOLKLORE  817 


it  came.  The  woman  resisted  for  a long  time  through  fear  of  the 
consequences  of  her  indiscretion.  Finally  she  promised  to  reveal 
the  mystery. 

“ One  day  the  husband  had  to  make  a journey ; before  starting  he 
strictly  enjoined  upon  his  wife  to  observe  secrecy  regarding  the  spring, 
to  admit  no  stranger  within  the  enclosure,  and  not  to  gossip  with  the 
neighbours. 

“ The  wife  promised  ; but  as  soon  as  the  husband  had  started  she 
went  to  find  her  lover,  and  said,  ‘ Come,  you  are  going  to  learn  where 
the  fish  comes  from.’ 

Her  lover  accom- 
panied her.  He  en- 
tered the  house, 
where  the  woman  re- 
galed him  with  palm 
wine  and  bananas, 
sorghum  porridge 
and  palm  oil,  sea- 
soned with  pepper, 
and  a quantity  of 
fish.  The  meal 
finished,  the  man 
said,  ‘Show  me  where 
you  catch  the  fish.’ 

She  replied,  ‘Yes, 
but  it  is  a secret 
which  you  can  only 
betray  at  the  cost  of 
great  misfortunes.’ 

‘ Fear  not,’  said  her 
lover. 

“ They  rose,  she 
led  him  within  the 
enclosure  and 
showed  him  what 
seemed  to  be  a little 
pool,  round  in  shape 
and  full  of  limpid  473*  A C0RNER  0F  Tanganyika,  near  the  north  end. 

water,  which  bubbled 

out  of  the  ground.  ‘ Look,’  said  she,  ‘ there  is  the  wonderful  spring,  and 
there  are  the  delicious  fish.’ 

“ The  man  had  never  seen  anything  like  it,  for  there  was  no  river 
in  the  neighbourhood.  A fish  coming  near  him,  he  stretched  out  his 
hand  to  catch  it.  Alas  ! that  was  the  end  of  everything  ! 

“ The  muzimu  (spirit)  was  enraged.  The  earth  split  asunder  ; the 
plain  sank  so  deep  that  the  longest  plummet  cannot  fathom  it ; the  spring 
overflowed  and  filled  the  great  chasm  which  had  appeared  in  the  earth. 

“And  now  what  do  you  see  at  the  spot  ? Tanganyika.” 


Tanganyika  has  probably  existed  as  a lake  at  least  as  far 
back  as  Miocene  times,  ages  before  any  type  of  man  appeared 

11. — Y 


818  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


in  Africa;  but  it  is  quite  likely  that  some  of  these  persistent 
East  Congoland  stories  of  earthquakes,  upheavals,  collapses, 
fire,  and  flood  (which  the  present  writer,  among  others,  has 
heard  from  Manyema  and  Baguha  negroes)  may  be  based  on 
the  terrible  volcanic  activity  which  created  the  Mfumbiro  peaks 
and  cut  off  Lake  Kivu  from  the  basin  of  the  Nile. 

Here  are  some  animal  stories.  The  first  is  from  the  Wele- 
Mubangi  River,  and  is  told  among  the  Azande  (Nyamnyam). 


The  Elephant  and  the  Shrew. — One  day  the  elephant  met 

the  shrew  mouse  on  his 
road.  “Out  of  the  way,” 
cried  the  latter.  “ I am  the 
bigger,  and  it  is  your  place 
to  look  out,”  replied  the 
monster.  “Curse  you!”  re- 
torted the  shrew  mouse 
furiously.  “ May  the  long 
grass  cut  your  legs!”  “And 
may  you  meet  your  death 
when  you  walk  in  the  road!” 
replied  the  other,  crushing 
him  under  his  huge  foot. 

Both  curses  have  been 
fulfilled.  From  that  day  the 
elephant  wounds  himself 


when  he 


goes 


through  the 


long  grass,  and  the  shrew 
mouse  meets  her  death 
when  she  crosses  the  road. 

[It  is  a curious  and  unex- 
plained fact  that  shrews  of 
the  genus  Crocidura  are 
constantly  found  lying  dead  on  the  bare  ground  of  the  native 
paths  in  tropical  Africa. — H.  H.  J.] 


474.  A WATER-POT  FROM  THE  SANGO 
COUNTRY,  MIDDLE  MUBANGI  RIVER 


The  Elephant  and  the  Chameleon  [a  Manbettu  story]. — 
One  day  the  chameleon  challenged  the  elephant  to  a race.  The 
latter  accepted  the  challenge,  and  a meeting  was  arranged  for 
the  following  morning.  But  during  the  night  the  chameleon 
placed  all  his  brothers  from  point  to  point  along  the  length  of 
the  track  where  the  race  was  to  be  run.  When  day  came  the 
elephant  started.  The  chameleon  quickly  slipped  behind  with- 
out the  elephant  noticing  it.  “Are  you  not  tired?”  asked  the 


TRADITIONS,  STORIES,  FOLKLORE  819 

monster  of  the  first  chameleon  he  met.  “Not  at  all,”  he 
replied,  executing  the  same  manoeuvre  as  the  former.  This 
stratagem  was  renewed  so  many  times  that  the  elephant,  tired 
out,  gave  up  the  contest  and  confessed  himself  beaten. 

The  Leopard  and  the  Jackal  [a  Manbettu  story]. — The 
leopard  had  caught  and  eaten  an  antelope.  The  jackal  seeing 
him  said,  “You  are  undoubtedly  a greedy  animal,  but  I wager 
that  your  voracity  is  nothing  in  comparison  with  mine.”  The 
leopard  began  to  laugh.  “ Let  us  see,”  he  replied. 

The  jackal  ran  to  a field  of  white  pumpkins,  which  he 
stripped  of  their  leaves,  and  in  the  midst  of  which  he  seated 
himself,  after  having  smeared  his  jaws  with  red  [from  their 
pulp].  When  the  leopard  arrived  and  saw  all  these  pumpkins, 
which  he  took  for  so  many  skulls,  he  beat  a hasty  retreat. 
“ What  is  the  matter?”  cried  the  jackal.  “ I am  afraid,”  replied 
the  leopard  without  abating  his  pace,  “and  I recognize  that 
you  are  fiercer  and  more  bloodthirsty  than  I.” 

The  following  is  a story  from  the  Nilotic  negroes  (Aluru) 
in  the  north-easternmost  corner  of  the  Congo  State  : — 

A man  had  two  wives,  one  gentle  and  prepossessing,  the 
other  such  a gossip  that  he  was  often  made  angry.  Neither 
remonstrances  nor  beatings  improved  her,  and  finally  he  made 
up  his  mind  to  drive  her  into  a wood  amongst  the  hyenas. 
There  she  built  herself  a little  hut,  in  which  a hyena  came  and 
boldly  installed  herself  as  mistress.  The  wife  tried  to  protest, 
but  the  hyena,  not  content  with  eating  and  drinking  all  that 
the  wife  was  preparing,  compelled  her  furthermore  to  look  after 
her  young.  Now,  one  day  when  the  hyena  had  ordered  the 
woman  to  boil  some  water,  while  waiting  for  her  the  latter  had 
the  sudden  idea  of  seizing  the  young  ones  and  throwing  them 
into  the  boiling  water  ; then  she  ran  all  trembling  to  take  refuge 
in  the  home  of  her  husband,  whom  she  found  calmly  seated  at 
the  entrance  of  the  house,  spear  in  hand.  She  threw  herself  at 
the  feet  of  her  spouse  beseeching  him  for  help  and  protection, 
and  when  the  hyena  arrived  foaming  with  rage,  the  husband 
stretched  it  dead  on  the  ground  with  a blow  of  his  spear. 

The  lesson  was  not  lost  on  the  wife.  From  that  day  forth 
she  became  the  joy  and  delight  of  her  husband. 

A story  of  the  Lokele  people,  north-east  bend  of  Congo  ; 
collected  by  the  Rev.  W.  H.  Stapleton  : — 

A woman  went  into  the  forest  to  seek  for  fish  in  the  streams. 


820  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Seeing  a stream  with  plenty  of  fish,  she  stopped,  put  her 
child  down  on  the  ground,  took  her  flat  basket,  went  down 
into  the  stream,  and  baled  the  water  out  of  the  stream. 
When  it  was  dry  she  picked  up  the  fish.  As  she  was  stoop- 
ing down  to  pick  up  the  fish  the  child  cried.  An  ape,1 
hearing  the  cry  of  the  child,  came  and  held  it  in  its  arms 
and  sang  songs  to  it.  When  the  woman  had  finished  picking 
up  the  fish  she  rose  up  to  take  the  child  and  saw  the  animal 

carrying  it,  and  the  mother 


wondered. 
The  ape 


spoke  to  the 


mother,  saying,  “ Don’t  be 
afraid.  I felt  pity  for  your 
child  because  it  was  crying.” 
And  he  said  to  the  mother, 
“ Take  your  child.”  She  took 
the  child  and  went  with  it  into 
the  town,  and  said  to  her  hus- 
band, “I  fished  for  fish  in  the 
stream,  and  an  ape  came  and 
nursed  the  child  and  sang  a 
song  to  it.” 

Her  husband  said  to  her, 
“That  is  untrue.”  But  the 
wife  said,  “Truly,  it  is  no  lie.” 
In  the  morning-  the  woman 
took  the  child  and  said  to  her 
husband,  “ Come  along,  let 
us  go.”  The  husband  took 
his  spear.  They  went  until 
they  reached  to  the  stream  ; 
the  wife  put  the  child  down 
and  went  into  the  stream, 
the  husband  hid  himself,  and  the  child  cried.  The  ape,  hearing 
the  cry  of  the  child,  came  and  picked  it  up  and  sang  a song  to 
it.  When  the  husband  saw  this  he  threw  his  spear ; the  ape 
held  out  the  child  (to  defend  himself)  and  the  spear  went  into 
the  body  of  the  child.  The  ape  said,  “ I felt  pity  for  your  child, 
and  you  have  not  killed  me,  but  you  have  killed  your  child.” 


475.  A WATER-JAR  WITH  HANDLE,  FROM 
THE  STANLEY  FALLS  REGION  (NEAR 
ARUWIMl) 

The  clay  pot  is  surrounded  by  a wicker  casing  of  palm- 
rind,  the  surface  of  which  is  more  or  less  plastered 
over. 


The  anthropoid  apes  of  the  Great  Congo  Forest  enter  con- 
siderably into  the  folklore  of  these  regions  and,  to  a more 
limited  extent,  into  the  beast  stories  of  Sierra  Leone.  [For 

1 Akolika , a Lokele  word  meaning  gorilla  or  chimpanzi. 


TRADITIONS,  STORIES,  FOLKLORE  821 

the  region  between  Portuguese  Guinea  and  the  Ivory  Coast  is 
a parallel  in  some  respects  to  the  Equatorial  P'orest  zone  of 
the  Cameroons-Congo- Uganda  region.] 

Elsewhere,  however,  they  are  altogether  foreign  to  these 
fables.  In  the  districts  between  the  Mubangi-Wele  and  the 
main  northern  Congo,  the  chimpanzi  and  gorilla  are  regarded 
with  some  degree  of  reverence,  and  their  extraordinary  resem- 
blance to  humanity  is  not  lost  on  the  observant  Sango,  Banza, 
Ababua,  Mongwandi,  Ngombe,  and  Bangala. 

The  Bangala  have  told  various  missionaries  a story  to  this 
effect : — 

“ The  chimpanzi  ( esumbu ) was  every  day  chased  by  the 
children  of  the  villages.  They  shot  at  him  crowds  of  arrows 
and  missiles  of  every  kind.  One  day,  however,  he  fled  no  longer  ; 
to  the  general  astonishment  of  the  people  he  was  seen  coming 
armed  with  a spear,  and  he  even  slew  a man.  Then  said  one 
of  the  negro  chiefs  to  the  great  ape,  ‘ Whoever  has  given  you 
that  spear  ? J The  ape  replied,  ‘ I ask  you,  in  my  turn,  who 
has  robbed  me  of  my  spears  ? Did  I not  precede  you  here  ? 
Have  you  not  taken  my  place,  man  ? Am  I not  your  father  ? ’ ” 

The  Bangala  have  this  legend  about  the  dog.  They  say 
that  there  lives  in  the  Bangala  country  a night-bird  which  con- 
stantly utters  the  cry  of  “ Mbwa ! Mbwa!  Mbwa!”  [Probably 
a kind  of  owl.]  The  noise  it  makes  disturbs  the  people  in  their 
sleep.  Their  story  is  that  formerly,  in  the  most  remote  times, 
this  bird  used  not  to  cry  thus.  But  one  day  it  saw  a very 
docile  and  obedient  animal  which  it  secured  as  an  attendant. 
This  animal  had  young  ones,  which  the  bird  divided  amongst 
other  fowls  of  the  air.  The  animal,  thus  domesticated,  rendered 
the  greatest  services  to  its  bird-masters.  One  day  when  it  was 
very  cold  a bird  said  to  its  servant,  “ Go  and  fetch  me  some 
fire  from  among  men.”  The  dog — for  the  animal  was  a dog — 
went  among  men,  but  found  itself  so  well  off  there  that  it  re- 
turned no  more  to  the  bird.  From  this  day  the  bird  never 
ceases  to  call  for  the  return  of  his  former  servant,  saying,  “ Mbwa! 
Mbwa  ! Mbwa  ! ” But  the  mbiva  does  not  return.1 

The  following  story  about  the  hippopotamus  and  the  croco- 
dile is  given  in  its  Bangala  version  ; but  the  present  writer  has 
taken  down  the  same  fable  from  the  Bayanzi  : — 

The  Hippopotamus  and  the  Crocodile. — The  hippopotamus 
and  the  crocodile  are  the  best  friends  on  earth,  and  have  been 

1 Mbwa , of  course,  in  Bangala  and  in  nearly  all  Bantu  languages  is  the  word  for 
“ dog.” 


822  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


so  ever  since  the  day  when  the  crocodile  addressed  himself  as 
follows  to  the  hippopotamus  : “If  you  wish  to  eat  the  grass  of 
my  domains  I allow  you  to  do  so,  on  one  condition — you  may 
be  the  ruler  in  running  water,  but  recollect  that  / reign  in 
the  marshes  and  grasses  and  stagnant  pools  which  border  the 
rivers.  Let  us  understand  each  other  then  : you  shall  undertake 
to  swamp  the  canoes  containing  much  human  game,  which  I will 
devour.  In  return  for  this  service,  you  shall  be  able  to  wander 
where  you  will,  unmolested,  in  my  marshes  and  reed  banks. 


476.  THE  CROCODILE’S  OPPORTUNITY  : CARRIERS  WADING  ACROSS  A TRIBUTARY 

OF  THE  WESTERN  CONGO 


Here  you  and  your  children  may  browse  and  sleep  as  much  as 
you  like.  . . 

The  hippopotamus  was  delighted  with  the  suggestion  and 
accepted  it. 

From  that  day  the  unfortunate  paddler,  dragged  down  in 
the  centre  of  the  stream  by  the  hippopotamus,  is  delivered  over 
by  him  to  his  friend  the  crocodile. 

Here  is  a story  collected  by  Torday  from  the  Bayaka  of 
the  Kwango  and  one  which — judging  from  some  scattered 
notes  in  his  diary — was  also  told  to  Grenfell  in  a slightly 
different  version  by  the  Babuma  on  the  Kwa,  farther  north. 


TRADITIONS,  STORIES,  FOLKLORE  823 

The  Toad  and  the  Kite. — The  toad  had  lent  some  beads 
to  the  kite. 

The  latter  did  not  want  to  pay,  so  he  kept  on  travelling  and 
travelling ; he  was  no  longer  seen  in  the  village. 

When  the  toad  came  to  ask  for  the  beads  back  again,  the 
kite  would  jest : he  would  not  even  be  there  ; he  used  to  say, 
“To-morrow,  to-morrow.” 

When  the  toad  was  weary  to  death  he  began  to  plan 
schemes  to  obtain  an  interview  with  the  kite. 

At  the  approach  to  the  toad’s  village  on  this  side  of  the 
river  was  a deserted  field. 

It  was  a dry  season,  the  grass  was  faded,  and  the  toad  set 
the  field  alight. 

When  the  fire  was  burnt  out,  he  placed  himself  on  a clod  of 
earth  and  exposed  his  white  belly  to  the  sky. 

When  the  kite  saw  the  smoke  of  the  fire,  he  soared  in  the 
air  to  see  whether  there  might  not  be  mice  lying  in  the  fields 
on  their  backs,  suffocated  and  dead. 

While  he  was  gazing  downwards,  he  spied  something  shining 
on  a clod  of  earth  and  began  to  beat  his  wings  and  to  say  to 
himself,  “There  is  a mouse.” 

The  kite  swooped  and  seized  upon  the  white  object ; he  put 
it  in  his  bag  and  carried  it  through  the  sky  ; but  he  did  not  see 
that  it  was  a toad. 

That  evening  when  he  returned  to  his  village,  the  kite 
went  indoors  with  his  mice  and  began  to  count  the  number  in 
his  bag. 

When  the  mice  escaped,  they  ran , but  the  toad  jumped 
out  and  said,  “ Hulloa,  kite!  Here  I am.  Give  me  my 
beads ! ” 

The  kite  stood  amazed  ; he  was  ashamed. 

He  proceeded  to  take  his  beads  out  from  his  secret  chamber 
and  counted  them  out  to  the  toad.  “ My  friend,  take  your 
beads ; it  is  right.  . . . But  how  will  you  return  to  your 
village  ? I have  not  carried  you  for  nothing.” 

The  toad  said,  “ I have  taken  my  beads ; if  I had 
not  laid  a trap  for  you,  I should  not  have  known  how  to 
get  back  my  loan ! I know  the  paths  which  lead  back  to  my 
home.” 

The  kite  did  not  understand  the  toad’s  cleverness.  At  night 
when  he  went  to  lie  down,  he  proceeded  to  hang  up  his  bag  on 
the  door  of  his  house  quite  close  to  the  ground.  When  the  toad 
saw  the  bag,  he  jumped  inside. 

The  kite  took  his  bag  early  and  went  for  a walk  ; but  it 


824  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

became  very  hot,  stiflingly  hot.  So  he  went  to  look  for  a river, 
placed  his  bag  on  the  bank,  and  descended  to  the  water  to 
bathe. 

The  toad  then  jumped  out,  crying,  “Aha,  my  friend!  I have 
travelled  for  nothing  after  all ! ” 

If  his  limbs  are  feeble,  his  wits  are  not  wanting. 

Some  wise  sayings  of  the  western  Congo  : — 

“We  are  tempted  to  strike  when  we  go  with  a stick  in  the 


477.  THE  WESTERN  CONGO  (ABOVE  MATADl) 

The  European  in  the  foreground  Is  the  Rev.  E.  Domenjoz,  a Swiss  missionary  (Congo- Balolo  Mission),  who 
discovered  the  old  Portuguese  inscriptions  on  the  rocks  north  of  Matadi,  pp.  71,  72. 

hand.”  [It  is  a universal  rule  to  attend  meetings  for  debate  un- 
armed.] 

“ Men  do  not  kill  with  their  mouths  ; we  ought  not  to  be 
angry  over  words.”  [At  public  meetings  speakers  are  allowed 
the  most  complete  freedom  of  speech.] 

“We  argue  more  calmly  and  our  ideas  are  clearer  when  we 
have  had  nothing  to  drink.”  [Palavers  take  place  in  the  morn- 
ing and  fasting.] 

At  these  meetings  for  public  discussion  the  last  word  of 
each  suggestion  is  uttered  not  by  the  speaker,  but  by  the  meet- 
ing in  chorus  [a  sort  of  “ missing  word  ” competition]  : any 
one  who  does  not  guess  it  or  who  forgets  to  repeat  it  is  driven 


TRADITIONS,  STORIES,  FOLKLORE  825 

out.  “ He  does  not  listen,  therefore  he  has  no  right  to  interfere 
in  the  discussion.”  (Grenfell’s  notebook.) 

Other  stories,  proverbs,  and  wise  sayings  of  the  Bakongo 
and  the  upper  river  tribes  are  given  in  W.  H.  Stapleton’s  Com- 
parative Handbook  of  Congo  Languages , in  Holman  Bentley’s 
Grammar  and  Dictionary  of  the  Kongo  Language , and  other 
works  ; and  in  Torday  and  Joyce’s  papers  on  the  Bayaka,  Bahu- 
ana,  Bambala,  and  Bayanzi,  etc.,  in  the  Journal  of  the  Royal 
Anthropological  Institute  for  1906-7.  Mr.  R.  E.  Dennett  (At 
the  Back  of  the  Black  Man  s Mind ) treats  to  some  extent  of  the 
folklore  and  traditions  of  the  Kakongo  people  (Luango  coast). 
The  Rev.  Fathers  Geens,  Heymans,  and  Colie  have  written  on 
these  subjects  as  regards  the  southern  Bateke,  Bayanzi,  Ban- 
gala,  Ngombe,  and  Baluba,  mostly  in  magazines  and  periodicals 
of  the  Catholic  missions  published  in  Belgium. 


CHAPTER  XXXI 


THE  LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  AND  THE 

CAMEROONS 

IT  has  been  pointed  out  already  in  this  book  that  to  the 
Baptist  missionaries  on  the  Congo  we  owe  important  data 
in  connection  with  the  study  of  African  languages.  Until 
the  records  of  Grenfell,  Stapleton,  and  William  Forfeitt  came 
to  hand,  it  had  not  been  possible  in  any  way  to  fix  the  northern 
boundary  of  the  Bantu  language  field.  We  can  now,  aided  by 
further  work  on  the  part  of  Torday  and  Vice-Consul  G.  B. 
Michell,  draw  this  boundary  almost  to  a nicety. 

As  this  geographical  fact  is  sufficiently  illustrated  on  the 
ethnographical  map  that  accompanies  this  book,  it  is  not 
necessary  to  add  a verbal  definition,  but  I would  draw  special 
attention  to  these  points  : that  there  is  a small  loop  of  non- 
Bantu  speech  ( Bamanga  and  south-western  Bakumu)  traversing 
the  north-eastern  bend  of  the  Congo,  that  an  allied  language, 
the  Ndonga , comes  down  very  near  to  the  northern  Congo, 
while  on  the  other  hand  the  Ababua  group  (now  shown  definitely 
to  be  Bantu)  reaches  to  the  upper  Wele,  if  it  does  not  extend 
beyond.1 

The  special  features  of  the  Bantu  languages  have  been  dealt 
with  by  the  present  writer  in  previous  works  on  Africa,  and 
more  authoritatively  in  the  studies  of  Bleek,  Meinhof,  Jacottet, 
Bentley,  Stapleton,  Torrend,  and  others.  To  the  author  of  this 
book  it  is  obvious  by  now  that  the  Bantu  languages  originated 
to  the  north  of  the  Equator,  in  Eastern  rather  than  in  West- 
Central  Africa.  The  basis  of  this  remarkable  language  family 
was  some  generalized  negro  speech  of  Northern  Equatorial 
Africa,  in  the  region  that  extends  from  the  White  Nile  right 
across  the  continent  to  Senegambia. 

Although  the  range  of  the  Bantu  languages — or  of  those 
forms  of  speech  so  nearly  allied  as  to  be  called  semi- Bantu — 

1 The  Bantu  peoples  on  this  map  are  indicated  by  printing  their  names  in  red. 
The  greater  part  of  the  Bakumu  people  should  be  coloured  ‘ red but  the  fact  of  their 
speech  being  Bantu,  except  in  the  extreme  west  of  their  range,  was  not  made  known 
by  Mr.  G.  B.  Michell  till  after  this  map  was  printed. 

826 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  827 

extends  at  the  present  day  farther  northwards  in  West  than  in 
East  Africa  [the  northernmost  range  of  the  pure  Bantu  being 
the  6th  degree  of  N.  Lat.  on  the  frontier  of  the  Cameroons 
territory,  while  the  semi- Bantu  extend  not  only  to  the  middle 
course  of  the  River  Benue,  but  as  far  north  and  west  as  the  9th 
degree  N.  Lat.  and  the  River  Kaduna1],  yet  the  focus  of  origin 
seems  to  have  lain  in  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa,  between  the 
3rd  and  4th  degree  of  N.  Lat.  There  are,  however,  slight 
affinities  with  the  Bantu  in  most  of  the  languages  of  the  lower 
Niger  and  in  those  of  other  West  African  groups  as  far  west- 
wards as  Portuguese  Guinea.  No  student  of  African  languages 
can  fail  to  be  struck  with  the  remarkable  resemblance  in  gram- 
mar and  structure  between  the  Timne  of  Sierra  Leone  and 
the  Bantu  family,  albeit  in  this  case  there  is  absolutely  no 
connection  in  word-roots , such  as  is  the  case  between  the  Bantu 
and  the  Madi  group  of  the  Bahr-al-Ghazal  and  mountain  Nile. 
This  last  resemblance  is,  however,  easily  exaggerated. 

The  affinities  of  the  semi-Bantu  group  (which  includes  most 
of  the  languages  of  the  middle  and  upper  Benue,  of  the  hinter- 
land of  the  Cameroons,  the  upper  waters  of  the  Sanga  River, 
and  even  possibly  the  north-western  basin  of  the  Mubangi) 
may  result  not  only  from  original  kinship  and  ancient  propin- 
quity with  the  Bantu  mother-tongue  (evolved  as  this  may  have 
been,  in  the  very  heart  of  Central  Africa),  but  have  become 
accentuated  in  the  more  southern  regions  by  the  first  conquer- 
ing advance  of  the  Bantu  people  from  east  to  west. 

The  linguistic  material  out  of  which  grew  up  the  Bantu 
language  family  no  doubt  once  extended  right  across  Northern 
Equatorial  Africa  from  east  to  west  before  the  intrusion  of 
Libyan,  Teda,  Nilote,  and  Hamite.  This  essentially  negro 
mother-speech — the  language  of  big  black  forest  dwellers — no 
doubt  overlay  and  absorbed  earlier  tongues  of  the  Hottentot- 
Bushman  type,  or  a still  more  primitive  speech  of  the  Pygmies. 

The  intrusion  of  the  Nilote  and  the  Hamite  into  the  basin 
of  the  Upper  Nile  may  have  brought  about  in  a short  space  of 
time  the  formation  of  the  true  Bantu  language  family2  [which, 

1 As  shown  by  the  recent  researches  of  the  Rev.  W.  P.  Low. 

2 The  present  writer  has  himself  been  a witness  to  the  sudden  creation  of  a new 
African  language,  which  might,  but  for  a change  of  circumstances,  have  become  a 
lingua  franca  over  South-Central  Africa.  When  he  introduced  Sikh  and  Panjabi 
soldiers  into  Nyasalarid  to  combat  the  Arabs,  these  Indians  had  to  drill  native 
soldiers,  and  in  doing  so  attempted  to  make  use  of  the  already  existing  trade 
language — Swahili  (which  is  a compromise  between  Bantu  and  Arabic)  ; but  being  in 
a hurry,  and  not  overgood  linguists,  they  impatiently  substituted  for  much  of  this 
speech  their  own  corrupt  Hindustani,  besides  certain  words  of  command  in  English. 
As  these  Indian  soldiers  became  very  popular  amongst  the  negroes  of  Nyasa- 


828  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


however,  betrays  little  or  no  affinities  in  phonology,  grammar, 
or  word-roots  with  the  Nilotic  or  Hamitic  groups,  and  is  purely 
West  African  in  its  relationships  with  the  Benue-Niger,  Fula, 
and  the  innumerable  groups  of  the  West  Coast  forest  belt]. 

Some  further  convulsion  or  the  emigration  of  a superior  type 
sent  the  Bantu  negroes  (possibly  under  Hamitic  leaders)  as  con- 
querors over  Eastern  and  Southern  Africa.  What  the  types 
were  of  the  languages  that  had  preceded  them  in  these  regions, 
and  which  they  absorbed  and  incorporated,  we  have  at  present 
little  means  of  judging.  Various  philologists — Carl  Meinhof 
particularly — have  revealed  the  existence  of  interesting  patches 
of  non- Bantu  speech  (and  non-Nilotic)  in  nooks  of  German 
East  Africa.  The  Sandawi  smacks  of  the  Hottentot,  the 
Kimhugu  is  a greater  puzzle.  It  has  a Bantu  phonology,  but 
presents  no  very  marked  affinities  in  word-roots  to  any  known 
African  group.  It  may  prove  to  have  had  a common  descent 
very  anciently  from  the  same  Central  African  source  as  the 
Ndonora-Bamangfa  and  other  non-Bantu  North-Central  African 

o o 

groups. 

In  the  regions  of  Zambezia  the  Bantu  were  undoubtedly 
preceded  by  the  Bushman  and  the  Hottentot,  and  these  inferior 
races  retreating  (where  they  were  not  exterminated  or  absorbed — 
they  were  largely  absorbed)  before  the  waves  of  Bantu  invasion, 
remained  at  last  cooped  up  in  the  south-western  extremity  of 
Africa. 

So  far  as  the  Congo  basin  was  concerned,  there  seem  to  have 
been  three  principal  routes,  and  perhaps  eras,  of  Bantu  inva- 
sion [and  the  word  invasion  must  be  regarded  as  meaning 
rather  the  implanting  of  a new  civilization  and  a new  type  of 
language  by  a superior  ruling  caste  of  men,  than  the  new 
peopling  of  this  part  of  the  continent,  involving  the  destruction 
of  a preceding  race  or  the  colonization  of  an  uninhabited  wilder- 
ness]. Before  the  Bantu  languages  reached  the  Congo  basin, 
ages  before,  we  may  well  suppose  that  Pygmies  and  Forest 
negroes  were  dwelling  there,  speaking  possibly  one  or  more 
languages  related  to  the  fundamental  negro  speech  which  at  a 
much  later  date  had  been  the  basis  of  the  Bantu. 

A preliminary  jet  of  Bantu  speech  (starting  from  the  obvious 


land,  they  soon  brought  about  the  existence  of  an  entirely  new  jargon,  composed  in 
equal  parts  of  Bantu  dialects,  Hindustani,  English,  and  Arabic,  a regular  hotch- 
potch, in  which  the  grammar  partook  of  much  of  the  Hindustani  character  (and  that 
again  is  Tartar  rather  than  Aryan),  while  the  vocabulary  was  mainly  Arabized  Banut. 
This  language  was  most  expressive,  and  but  for  the  return  of  the  Indian  soldiers  to 
India  might,  supplemented  by  the  efforts  of  the  immigrating  Indian  traders,  have 
become  the  great  language  of  commercial  intercourse  north  of  the  Zambezi. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  829 

and  only  focus  of  Bantu  creation,  northern  Unyoro)  crossed 
the  Nile  or  the  Albert  Nyanza,  forced  its  way  through  the 
Aruwimi  forests  and  followed  the  course  of  the  Aruwimi  down 
to  the  Congo,  or  struck  across  due  west  to  the  Wele- 
Mubangi. 

The  easternmost  languages  that  remain  to  attest  this  First 
Invasion  of  the  Bantu  are  the  Lubirct  and  Libusese  and  the 
Lilese  of  the  Ituri  sources,  the  Lihuku  of  the  lower  Semliki, 
and  the  Kuamba  of  the  north-western  flanks  of  Ruwenzori. 
Along  the  northern  fringe  of  the  area  covered  by  this  First 
Invasion  is  the  great  Babua  (Ababua)  widespread  group  of 
dialects  which  extends  (with  interruptions)  from  the  northern 
sources  of  the  Aruwimi- Ituri  almost  as  far  west  as  the  con- 
fluence of  the  Wele  with  the  Mbomu.1  Southwards  this  group 
penetrates  down  the  Aruwimi  to  the  main  Congo,  and  may  be 
taken  to  include  the  Soko  and  Kele  languages.  The  most 
vigorous  part,  the  main  body  of  the  First  Bantu  Invasion, 
forced  its  way  westwards  farther  to  the  south  than  the 
Mubangi-Wele,  along  the  main  course  of  the  great  Congo 
and  up  its  principal  affluents,  north  and  south,  finally  reach- 
ing the  Atlantic  coast  between  the  Congo  mouth  and  the 
Cameroons.2 

The  Second  Invasion  of  the  Bantu  was  (we  may  suppose) 

1 There  are  evidences  in  place,  river,  and  tribal  names  that  the  whole  of  the 
course  of  the  Mubangi-Wele  and  of  many  of  its  northern  affluents  was  once  more 
or  less  within  Bantu  limits.  The  Bantu  may  have  overlaid  one  or  more  older  speech- 
groups,  such  as  the  Ndonga-Bamanga  or  the  Mundu.  But  it  is  probable  that  the 
Bubu,  Sango,  Nsakara,  Nyamnyam,  and  Manbettu  groups  are  more  recent  arrivals  from 
the  north  that  have  counteracted  the  influence  of  the  Bantu  coming  from  the  east 
and  south,  and  have  pushed  them  back  in  many  directions  almost  to  the  banks  of  the 
main  Congo.  The  river  and  tribal  names  along  the  Wele-Mubangi  are  particularly 
suggestive  of  Bantu  origin.  There  is,  for  example,  the  well-known  Bantu  river  name 
of  Kwango,  applied  to  one  of  the  northern  affluents  of  the  Mubangi  in  its  western 
course.  (It  is  true  that  Chevalier  points  out  that  this  river  is  known  by  the  Banda  as 
Waka,  but  the  Banda,  are  new-comers  in  the  region.) 

At  the  present  day  the  people  speaking  Bantu  languages  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
Wele  are  outlying  members  of  the  great  Ababua  or  Babati  group.  The  Babati 
dialects  extend  their  range  eastwards  as  far  as  the  Balese  country  on  the  upper 
Aruwimi.  There  is  a considerable  break  of  non-Bantu  country  between  the  Balese 
or  Bakwa  and  the  Babati,  who  are  found  to  the  west  of  the  River  Nepoko,  but  there 
can  be  no  question  of  the  general  relationship  between  the  Balese  dialects  of  the 
Ituri  Forest  and  those  of  the  region  north  of  the  Aruwimi  basin,  on  the  Rubi  River, 
and  along  the  south  bank  of  the  Wele.  Moreover,  the  Abanjia  and  Abarambo  of 
the  Azande  country  may  once  have  belonged  to  this  network  of  corrupt  Bantu 
speech.  There  are  even  evidences  in  tribal  names  that  the  original  inhabitants  of  the 
Manbettu  country  spoke  similar  Bantu  dialects.  The  Abanjia  of  the  Nyamnyam 
countries  may  be  akin  in  origin  to  the  semi-Bantu  Manjia  who  range  between  the 
basin  of  the  Mubangi,  the  upper  Sanga,  and  the  western  affluents  of  the  Shari. 

2 The  main  body  of  the  First  invasion  accounts  in  great  part  for  the  vocabulary 
and  structure  of  the  Bagenya , Manyema , Balolo  ( Mongo ),  Ngombe , and  Bateke 
languages,  together  with  the  dialects  (including  the  Fan  or  Fahwe)  of  French  Congo, 
the  Gaboon,  Cameroons  coast,  and  Fernando  Po. 


830  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

almost  due  south  from  their  place  of  origin,  and  skirted  the 
eastern  borders  of  the  great  Congo  Forest,  descending  the 
east  and  west  coasts  of  Tanganyika.  From  the  west  coast  of 
Tanganyika,  the  Bantu  languages  penetrated  at  first  somewhat 
falteringly  westwards,  the  invaders  being  impeded,  no  doubt,  by 
the  dense  forest,  and  obliged  to  absorb  or  compromise  with 
the  Pygmies  or  Forest  negroes,  on  whom,  nevertheless,  they 
imposed  a Bantu  speech. 

But  in  the  clearer,  more  open  country  round  the  south-west 
and  south  coasts  of  Tanganyika,  this  Second  Invasion,  which 
left  behind  the  Kabwari,  Kilega,  and  Kiguha  languages  on  its 
southward  route,  found  a new  Bantu  motherland  in  the  Rua, 
Marungu,  and  Bemba  territories,  a second  focus  and  radius  of 
development.  Thence  pure  and  melodious  forms  of  Bantu 
speech  grew  up  outside  the  obstructive  forest  and  advanced 
southwards,  south-westwards,  and  due  west,  besides  later  ascend- 
ing the  river-courses  northwards  into  the  heart  of  the  Congo 
basin.  Between  the  Sankuru  and  the  Kasai  the  impulse  of 
the  Second  Invasion  created  the  vigorous  group  of  Luba 
dialects.  But  the  main  body,  preserving  an  archaic  type  of 
Bantu,  with  many  East  African  features,  kept  steadily  ad- 
vancing westwards  and  southwards  till  it  reached  the  upper 
Zambezi  and  the  upper  Kwango,  thence  (possibly)  spreading 
out  fan-shaped,  and  eventually  culminating  in  the  well-marked, 
essentially  Bantu  speech  of  the  Herero  cattle-keepers  in  Damara- 
land.  It  then  advanced  northwards  along  the  Atlantic  coast 
through  Southern  Angola,  and  spread  rapidly  over  Western 
Congoland,  strengthened  by  this  access  to  the  sea.  Thus  it  (the 
Second  Bantu  Invasion  of  the  Congo  basin)  formed  not  only  the 
basis  of  the  modern  Kongo  language  [which  is  a distinctly  archaic 
type  of  Bantu,  degenerating  eastwards  into  the  more  corrupt 
Bayaka  and  Kasai- Kwilu  groups],  but  created  the  similar 
dialects  of  the  Ka-kongo  district,  and  still  carried  on  its  pre- 
eminently Bantu  conformation  till  it  had  approached  the 
estuary  of  the  Ogowe  and  Gaboon,  where  its  force  mingled 
with  that  of  the  First  Invasion,  which  had  reached  the  Gaboon 
and  Cameroons  by  a more  direct  route. 

The  northernmost  of  unquestionably  Bantu  dialects  is 
the  Barundo  or  Bakasi  of  the  Rio  del  Rey,  North-West 
Cameroons.  The  peopling  of  Fernando  Po  seems  to  have 
taken  place  rather  from  a north-easterly  direction,  and  the  first 
negro  colonizers  of  that  island  were  probably  a race  speaking  a 
Bantu  language  of  an  archaic  type,  an  original  relic  of  the  First 
Invasion  across  the  Congo  basin. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  831 

The  Third  Invasion  of  the  Bantu  affected  the  Congo  basin 
but  slightly  in  a linguistic  sense.  It  may  have  introduced,  or 
more  likely  accentuated,  the  Hima  civilization,  and  have  trans- 
ported the  Bakuba  aristocracy  to  the  banks  of  the  Sankuru,  but 
its  main  stream  of  language  influence  took  a more  direct 
southerly  and  easterly  course.  The  Third  Invasion  contributed 
a very  archaic  form  of  Bantu  speech  ( Olu-konjo ) to  the 
southern  flanks  of  Ruwenzori  and  the  highlands  separating  the 
Congo  basin  from  the  Semliki  and  Lake  Albert  Edward.  It 
implanted  Hima  peoples  and  dialects  of  the  Unyoro  type  in  the 
Albertine  Rift  valley  up  to  the  north  end  of  Tanganyika  (Ava- 
tutsi)  and  along  the  east  coast  of  that  lake  to  the  verge  of  the 
Nyasa-Tanganyika  plateau.  Hima  influence  in  speech  also 
crossed  Lake  Albert  Nyanza  and  established  itself  with  the 
usual  cattle-keeping  aristocracy  on  the  north-eastern  verge  of  the 
Congo  Forest.  Here  we  find  the  Ru-kobe  or  Lukyopi  speech 
in  abrupt  contiguity  with  a dialect  of  the  First  Invasion  ( Libusese 
or  Lisese  or  Lubira  akin  to  the  Kuamba  of  north  Ruwenzori). 
And  on  Ruwenzori  the  Unyoro  dialects  (Orutoro,  etc.)  and 
Olu-konjo  of  the  Third  Invasion  find  themselves  in  equally 
sharp  contrast  with  this  same  Kuamba , which  is  more  nearly 
related  to  the  Bantu  languages  of  the  Upper  Congo  and  even 
of  Fernando  Pd  than  it  is  to  the  neighbouring  Bantu  dialects  of 
the  Uganda  Protectorate. 

Our  knowledge  of  the  distinct  families  of  non- Bantu 
languages  within  the  northern  basin  of  the  Congo  is  still  ex- 
ceedingly slight.  Before  the  publication  of  this  book  it  was 
still  more  fragmentary ; but  the  researches  of  the  Baptist 
missionaries  Grenfell,  Stapleton,  and  William  Forfeitt,  and  the 
vocabularies  collected  by  the  late  Sir  Henry  Stanley,  by 
Torday,  Michell,  and  by  the  present  writer,  have  enabled  us 
to  get  a little  nearer  towards  a classification  of  the  different 
types  of  non-Bantu  speech  found  within  the  northern  area  of 
the  Congo  basin. 

This  region  between  the  Albertine  Rift  valley,  on  the  east, 
and  the  watershed  of  the  Cameroons,  on  the  west,  contains 
isolated  and  peculiar  African  languages,  just  as  it  affords 
harbourage  for  remarkable  examples  of  the  African  mammalian 
fauna  and  primitive  human  types.  It  is  earnestly  to  be  hoped, 
therefore,  that  before  the  European  and  the  Arab  with  their 
hosts  of  native  followers  can  lessen  or  extinguish  the  special 
idiosyncrasies  of  the  indigenes  together  with  their  peculiar 
dialects  and  languages,  a careful  ethnographical  survey  may  be 


832  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

made  to  place  on  record  information  which  will  assist  us  to 
unravel  many  of  the  problems  of  African  ethnology. 

Briefly  summarized,  so  far  as  our  information  yet  goes,  the 
non-Bantu  families  of  African  speech  now  known  to  exist  in 
the  northern  part  of  the  Congo  basin  may  be  described  as 
follows  : — 

Beginning  on  the  south-west,  the  traveller  would  first 
observe  as  he  ascended  the  River  Mubangi  the  non-Bantu 
speech  of  the  Banza  or  Mpombo , where  this  people  of  fine 
physique  comes  down  to  the  eastern  banks  of  that  river,  north 
of  the  3rd  degree  of  N.  Lat.  The  Banza  language,  as  will 
be  set  forth  on  pages  838-40,  shows  signs  of  being  related  to 
the  Mundu  of  the  Egyptian  Sudan,  seven  hundred  miles  to  the 
north-east.  We  may  therefore  speak  of 

(1)  The  Banza-Mundu  group,  as  being  represented  (there 
may,  of  course,  be  intervening  enclaves)  in  the  extreme 
west  of  the  Mubangi- Wele  basin  and  in  the  extreme  north- 
east. 

(2)  The  Sango  group,  which  apparently  includes  the  speech 
of  the  M'ongwandi  of  the  upper  Mongala  River,  and  perhaps 
that  of  the  Bwaka,  Bwajiri,  Bongo,  Abodo,  and  the  Kunda, 
Yakoma,  and  Gembele.  Except  that  there  are  a few  words  in 
common  with  the  Nyamnyam,  and  some  borrowed  terms  from 
the  Bantu,  this  speech,  so  far  as  it  has  been  illustrated  in  a recent 
vocabulary  collected  by  Torday  (together  with  a few  words  of 
Hodister’s  or  Baert’s  transcription),  offers  no  resemblance  to  any 
other  known  group  of  Congo  languages. 

(3)  The  speech  of  the  tribes  round  the  north-western  bend  of 
the  Mubangi  and  to  the  north  of  that  river — Langwasi,  Ngapu 
or  Ngafo,  Alanba,  Mosokuba,  Bubu,  etc. — belong,  according  to 
Chevalier,  to  the  Banda  family.  The  Banda  language  group 
extends  far  and  wide  into  the  western  part  of  the  Bahr-al- 
Ghazal  and  the  Shari  basin.  But  its  affinities  are  absolutely 
unknown  at  this  moment,  for  no  traveller  in  these  regions  has 
deemed  it  worth  while  to  collect  any  intelligible  vocabulary. 
The  Banda  are  much  associated  in  their  movements  and  rela- 
tions with  the  following  group  (No.  4). 

(4)  The  Manjia-Baya.  According  to  Chevalier,  the  Manjia 
and  their  allies  would  seem  to  speak  a semi-Bantu  language, 
connected  fundamentally  with  that  of  the  Baya.  This,  there- 
fore, may  be  theoretically  classified  as  group  No.  (4),  and 
will  include  the  Banziri,  Ndri,  Mburu,  and  all  the  languages 
between  the  north-western  Mubangi  and  the  head-waters  of  the 
Sanga.  The  chain  of  affinities  can  indeed  be  carried  much 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  833 

farther  west,  beyond  the  Congo  basin,  into  the  interior  of  the 
Cameroons,  for  the  Indiki,  Wute,  Bali,  and  Ngaumdere1  lan- 
guages are  all  connected  with  the  Baya,  and  with  the  forms  of 
speech  in  the  eastern  basin  of  the  Cross  River.  All  these 
languages  may  be  described  as  semi-Bantu , in  that  they  employ 
in  a greater  or  less  degree  Bantu  prefixes  to  distinguish  singular 
from  plural,  though  they  seem  to  have  lost  the  concord  almost  en- 
tirely. There  is  a slight  affinity  in  their  numerals  with  those  of  the 
Bantu,  and  some  word-roots  also  evince  a common  origin.  My 
own  impression  is  that  the  faint  relationships  between  these 
languages  and  those  of  the  Bantu  are  due  partly  to  a common 
descent,  ages  ago,  from  some  great  fundamental  speech  of 
North-Central  Africa  (the  parent  equally  of  the  Bantu),  and 
also  to  a much  later  borrowing  from  the  language  of  Bantu 
invaders  and  teachers.2 

(5)  In  the  south-eastern  part  of  the  basin  of  the  Mongala 
River,  within  quite  a short  distance  of  the  northern  Congo,  an 
interesting  non- Bantu  speech  has  recently  been  discovered  by 
the  Rev.  William  Forfeitt.  This  he  calls  Bondonga  or 
N donga?  I give  later  on  Mr.  Forfeitt’s  short  vocabulary. 
There  is  evidence  in  this,  slight,  but  quite  conclusive,  to  show 
that  the  Ndonga  language  must  be  associated  with  the  even 
more  remarkable  non- Bantu  speech  of  the  Bamanga  or  Western 
Bakumu.  Therefore  I propose  to  call  group  No.  (5)  Ndonga- 
Bamanga.  The  language  of  the  Bamanga  (whose  name,  like 
that  of  the  Ndonga,  is  obviously  a Bantu  designation  con- 
ferred on  them  by  surrounding  tribes)  extends  from  the 
north-eastern  bend  of  the  Congo- Lualaba  to  the  upper  River 
Lindi.  [Indeed,  Lindi  means  “river”  in  their  language.] 
Although  the  Bamanga  speech,  so  abundantly  illustrated  by  the 
late  W.  H.  Stapleton,  is  obviously  allied  to  that  of  the 
Ndonga,  neither  of  these  (except  for  a few  borrowed  words) 
evinces  an  obvious  resemblance  to  another  known  group  of 

1 This  word  is  sometimes  spelt  Ngau-mdere  or  Ngau-ndere.  The  last  syllable 
seems  connected  with  the  tribal  names  farther  east  of  the  Ndri,  Pa-tri,  Ba-zere,  Ban- 
ziri,  described  by  various  travellers  as  semi-Bantu  in  speech. 

2 I am  sometimes  inclined  to  classify  this  group  of  semi-Bantu  speech,  which 
occupies  the  eastern  basin  of  the  Cross  River,  the  north-eastern  hinterland  of  the 
Cameroons,  and  the  region  between  the  upper  Benue,  the  Shari  basin,  and  the 
Mubangi,  as  the  Mfoii  languages ; for  they  nearly  all  possess  in  common  a word-root 
resembling  Mfoii  to  indicate  the  ox,  and  also  use  this  term  as  a reverential  salute,  as 
a title  for  a chief  or  nobleman. 

3 I do  not  believe  this  is  the  correct  name  of  the  people  or  language,  but  is  a 
Bantu  designation  conferred  on  them  by  some  interpreter  ; but  as  there  is  no  other 
term  available,  this  language  must  for  the  present  be  known  as  Ndonga.  The  same 
remarks  apply  to  the  tribal  names  of  Mfiombo , Mongwandi , Western  Bakumu , 
Bamanga , etc.  These  (I  believe)  are  either  nicknames  bestowed  by  Bantu  neigh- 
bours or  the  inherited  designations  of  conquered  Bantu  tribes. 

II.— Z 


834  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

African  speech.  At  present,  with  our  imperfect  knowledge, 
groups  (2)  Sango  and  (5)  N donga- B amanga  are  as  isolated  in 
their  way  as  groups  (6)  Momvu-Mbuba,  (7)  Lendu,  (8)  Man- 
bettu, (9)  Madi,  (10)  Makarka,  or  Nyamnyam.1 

All  but  the  last-named  are  found  in  the  north-eastern  part 
of  the  Congo  basin,  and  into  this  region  may  also  penetrate 
from  over  the  border  of  the  Nile  watershed  fragments  of 
Nilotic  speech  (. Aluru ).  The  Krej  of  the  far  north  is  not 
as  yet  classified  ; it  may  be  connected  with  the  equally  un- 
known speech  of  the  Banda,  or  it  may  have  Nilotic  affinities 
such  as  can  be  traced  westwards  from  the  White  Nile  to  the 
vicinity  of  Lake  Chad.  The  Nyamnyam  {Makarka,  Zande ) 
language  has  recently  invaded  the  Congo  basin.  It  has  a wide 
domain  at  present,  extending  almost  from  the  mountain  Nile 
on  the  east  to  the  Chinko  or  Shinko  River  in  the  far  west. 
The  language  of  the  Nsakara  tribe  (between  the  Mbomu  and 
Koto  rivers)  is  as  yet  absolutely  unknown  to  the  student  of 
African  philology,  but  is  said  by  one  or  two  travellers  in  those 
regions  to  resemble  Nyamnyam  in  its  structure  and  vocabulary. 

Some  of  the  above-mentioned  groups  like  Lendu , Momvu, 
Mundu,  Manbettu , or  B amanga- Ndonga  may  be  relics  of  ancient 
settlements  that  preceded  the  Bantu  invasion.  Any  one  of 
these  may  have  been  the  original  [or  a]  language  of  the  Pygmies. 
But  the  other  types  of  speech  instanced  in  this  catalogue, 
such  as  Banda,  Manjia,  Nyamnyam,  Madi,  Sango , Mongwandi, 
and  even  perhaps  Manbettu,  appear  to  have  pushed  southwards 
into  the  Congo  basin  within  quite  recent  periods,  overlying 
or  displacing  the  Bantu. 


If  the  original  speech  of  the  Pygmies  lingers  anywhere  at 
the  present  day,  it  is  in  the  very  centre  of  Congoland,  in  the 


1 Here  and  there  is  a glancing  shaft  suggesting  affinities  between  this  loose  con- 
federation, including  also  the  Banza-Mundu  and  Banda  groups.  But  no  doubt  they 
have  all  borrowed  (in  common  with  the  Bantu)  from  the  fundamental  language  of  the 
Central  Sudan  negroes. 

The  Nyamnyam  and  Madi  families  use  prefixes  to  a slight  extent,  and  have 
other  features  which  occasionally  suggest  an  affinity  with  the  Bantu  syntax.  The 
Manbettu  language  also  seems  to  employ  prefixes  occasionally.  But  the  Ndonga  and 
Bamanga  use  suffixes  only  in  their  syntax.  Yet  it  is  evident  to  the  present  writer  that 
in  African  forms  of  speech  (as  in  our  own)  what  is  the  prefix  of  one  century  may  easily 
become  the  suffix  of  the  next.  In  proof  of  this  theory  may  be  instanced  the  com- 
plete revolution  in  English  as  to  the  place  of  the  preposition  in  word-formation.  The 
Teutonic  practice,  which  continued  down  to  the  eighteenth  century,  was  to  place  the 
qualifying  preposition  before  the  noun  or  verb.  The  modern  practice  since  the  be- 
ginning of  the  nineteenth  century  tends  more  and  more  to  place  it  after.  Thus  we 
have  upbringing  contrasted  with  bringing  up,  onset  with  set  on,  etc.  In  the  Fula 
language  the  suffixes  attached  to  the  noun  are  in  every  other  respect  like  th z prefixes 
of  the  Bantu,  with  the  same  principle  of  “concord.” 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  835 

region  between  the  Sankuru  on  the  south-west  and  the  Lomami 
and  Lualaba  on  the  north-east.1  It  may  be  that  the  Lolo, 
Mongo,  Lunkundu  dialects  of  the  Balolo  group  contain  many 
old  Pygmy  words.  They  are  certainly  amongst  the  most 
corrupt  and  debased  of  the  Bantu  languages  in  the  Congo 
basin.  Probably  this  portion  of  the  Congo  was  the  last  to  be 
invaded  and  assimilated  by  the  Bantu  invaders,  and  here  their 
language  force  became  enfeebled  before  the  pent-up  speech  of 
the  Pygmies.  There  may  also  be  a good  many  Pygmy  words 
in  the  dialects  of  the  central  Aruwimi.  So  far,  however,  no 
traveller  has  recorded  any  words  from  the  mouths  of  Pygmies 
which  do  not  belong  definitely  to  one  group  or  other  of  African 
speech  identified  as  that  of  the  big  negroes  living  alongside 
each  Pygmy  tribe.2 

The  language  of  the  Bambute  of  the  upper  Ituri  as  written 
down  by  the  author  of  this  book  ( Uganda  Protectorate ) is 
shown  to  be  closely  akin  to  Mbuba , which  is  a member  of  the 
isolated  Momvu  group.  Further  south  or  north  the  Pygmies 
speak  the  degraded  Kibira , Balese , or  Babati  dialects  of  Bantu. 
When  Grenfell  encountered  the  Pygmies  on  the  lower  Nepoko 
(in  1902)  and  wrote  down  some  of  their  language  he  thought 
he  was  on  the  track  of  an  original  speech.  I append  his  notes, 
but  have  inserted  myself  a number  of  parallel  words  from 
Manbettu,  showing  that  this  speech  of  the  Wambutu  (Nepoko) 
Pygmies  is  merely  a dialect  of  Manbettu  : — 3 

1 Grenfell,  Verner,  and  the  present  writer  have  all  independently  noted  the 
peculiar  Pygmy  pronunciation,  by  which  consonants  are  sometimes  replaced  by  a 
kind  of  faucal  gasp  (described  by  Grenfell  as  a click).  Much  the  same  definition  is 
given  by  Verner  ; but  the  present  writer,  in  listening  to  the  Bambute  Pygmies  or 
those  that  spoke  the  Bantu  dialect  of  Kibira,  noticed  nothing  approaching  a click, 
merely  a sort  of  gasp  or  hiatus  expressed  by  an  apostrophe.  This  resembled  at 
times  the  Arabic  ’Ain,  or  the  catch  in  the  voice  which  is  so  marked  a feature  in  the 
Glasgow  dialect,  and  which  in  Scottish  pronunciation  often  takes  the  place  of  the 
letter  /. 

2 Dr.  J.  David,  for  some  time  resident  in  North-East  Congoland,  gave  in  the 
Brunswick  Globus  for  1904  a brief  vocabulary  of  Pygmy  speech  from  the  upper 
Ituri,  but  it  is  only  a variant  of  Mbuba. 

3 As  already  stated,  except  for  peculiarities  of  pronunciation,  the  Pygmies  merely 
seem  to  speak  the  languages  of  the  big  people  around  them.  Those  that  Grenfell 
encountered  on  the  Nepoko  River  used  a corrupt  form  of  Manbettu.  Those  met  with 
by  Stanley  on  the  north-western  Ituri  spoke  a dialect  (Balese,  Bakiokwa)  of  the  wide- 
spread Babua  group  of  corrupt  Bantu.  The  present  writer  recorded  the  use  by  the 
Bambute  dwarfs  of  the  Mbuba  language,  and,  further  south,  of  the  Bantu  dialect  of 
Kibira.  Stanley  in  earlier  journeys  met  Pygmies  that  spoke  the  Balega  language  or 
kindred  dialects  on  the  equatorial  Lualaba-Congo.  The  Batwa  of  Wissmann,  Wolf, 
and  Verner  used  a Luba  dialect,  or  whatever  language  was  adopted  by  their  Bantu 
over-lords.  Lord  Mountmorres’  Bua  Pygmies  apparently  speak  the  Lunkundu  or 
Lolo  language.  The  Bebaya’a  Pygmies,  recently  discovered  by  Mr.  G.  L.  Bates  in 
the  basin  of  the  upper  Sanga,  talk  either  a dialect  of  Fan  or  of  the  semi-Bantu 
Baya.  The  Babongo  Pygmies  of  the  lower  Ogowe  employ  the  debased  speech  of 
that  region. 


836  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


WAMBUTU.1 

1 = kana 

2 = solo 

b 

3 = kosa 

4 = jona 

5 = ebuluka 

6 = eeka 

7 = epo 

8 = kemba 


MANBETTU. 

ona.2 
. orvvi. 

. ota. 

. oswa. 
zerna. 

. tengwi  kana. 

. tororwi  (?  old  Bantu  root  for  ‘ five’  = to — com- 
bined with  orwi,  ‘ two  ’ ?). 

. gwanda. 

9 tengirigi-kana,  or  tegiligi-kana. 

10  tekke-we  [vide  the  word  for  ‘tens’  in  Mundu\. 


[Note, — Grenfell  questions  the  accuracy  of  his  transcription  of  the 
numerals  3 to  8 inclusive.] 


Afternoon 
A rm 
Artery  . 
Bird 

Boy  ( child ) 
Brain  . 

Canoe  . 

Child  . 

Chin 

Cloth 

Elephant 

Eye 

Father  . 
Fight , war 
Fire 

Firewood 
Fish 
Fowl  . 


Goat 
Hat  . 
Heart  . 
House  . 
Hunger 
Leg 
Man 


nabo. 

kwo  ( Bantu  also.  Manbettu , netekwo). 
esisa. 

b 

nei  (nari  in  Manbettu). 
nangwa  (. Manbettu , ndrangwa). 
amedukwokwo  ( related  to  Makarka  dudu 
= brain). 

nekoko  (. Manbettu , nekoko). 
nangwa  (. Manbettu , negongwe). 
etaka  ( Manbettu , netacieci). 
nogi  ( Manbettu , noggi). 
noko  ( Manbettu , noko). 
nengo  (. Manbettu , nengo). 
papa  ( Manbettu , papa), 
napo  (. Manbettu , napu). 
nago  ( Manbettu , nakagu). 
aki  ( Manbettu , ekkirre). 
engele  (. Manbettu , nengere). 
ahwe  (this  word  is  related  to  the  name  for 
fowl  in  the  Madi , Lendu  and  Mbuba 
dialects). 
mbusi  (Bantu). 
ekoti. 
ebi. 

logio  (. Manbettu , nejo). 
nemo  ( Manbettu , nemu). 
nenjo  (Manbettu,  nedo). 
nombi. 


1 WAMBUTU  is  probably  a Bantu  plural  for  the  racial  name  Mbutu , Mbuttu , of 
which  “ Mombutu”  (Monbuttu)  maybe  the  Bantu  singular.  Manbettu  is  no  doubt  only 
another  form  of  the  same  word.  Many  of  these  northern  peoples  adopt  Bantu  tribal 
designations  even  if  they  have  ceased  to  speak  Bantu  dialects.  See  p.  861,  “Bambuttu.” 

2 In  transcribing  these  and  other  African  dialects  the  author  has  adopted  a 
simple  orthography  which  is  nearly  the  same  as  the  Lepsius’  Alphabet.  The  conso- 
nants are  pronounced  as  in  English  (except  that  c= ch,  ,y  = sh,  n = ng’)and  the  vowels 
as  in  Italian  (6  = 0 in  “bone”  or  oa  in  “loan”). 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  837 


( Same  in  plural .) 
Morning  {early)  . 
Mouth  . 

Monkey 
Mother . 

Mud 

Palm  nut 
Path 

Plantain  ( banana ) 

Rain 

Shame  . 

Slave  . 

Spear  . 

Sugar-cane  . 
Tongue 


Tooth  . 

Wall  (of  house) 
Water  . 

Wife , woman 
Wisdom , knowledge 


nobwobwo. 

etikpo  (. Mahbettu , nettikpo). 
nambitali  (. Mahbettu , nabura). 
yau. 

nope  (#«  old  Bantu  root  for  mud  or  water  ; 

reappears  in  Fernando  PS). 
nekolokbo. 

nehi  (. Mahbettu , neyi). 

(h  pronounced  as  with  a gasp  or  click l) 
ebugu  (. Manbettu , ebugu). 
ekuma  (. Manbettu , nekuma). 
di. 

amogia. 

ekonga  (Bantu). 
etolo  (Manbettu,  naturu). 
edada  (Mahbettu,  nekkadra ; Semi-Bantu, 
Balese,  Babati,  Bakwa  dialects , daka  and 
daga). 

neki  (Mahbettu,  ekki). 
nego. 

negwo  (Mahbettu,  eggu). 
nando  (Mahbettu,  nandro). 
amanyela  (a  Bantu  word). 


This  is  bad 
That  is  good 


bad  hat 
good  „ 
good  banana 
bad  ,, 
large  „ 


A small  „ 

A short  „ 

A very  good  man 
This  man  is  not  good 
One  man 
Two  men 
Many  plantains 

(bananas) 

All  plantains 
Plantains  (are)  finished 
(Shame  = di)  to  be  ashamed  . amodi. 

(Fight,  war  = nap  wo)  the 
fight  or  war  is  coming  nap  wo  azaku. 
(Arm  = Kwo)  He  stretches 

out  his  arm  . . ametenge  kwo. 

Come!  ....  keza. 

Go  back ! . . . ketu. 


ebandana  amoda. 

ebanduni  amombe  (Mahbettu,  mombe ; 

omb  e=good). 
ekoti  amoda. 

„ amombe. 
ebugu  amombe. 

„ amoda. 

„ amokwokwo  (Mahbettu,  nekpopwo 
= large). 

„ amegwangwe. 

„ amipipi. 
nombi  ombapima. 
nombi  ane  kokokombe. 
nombi  kana. 
nombi  sholo. 

ebugu  amototo  (Mahbettu,  mekutu-kutu  = 
many)  or  ebugu  ngwu. 
ebugu  pete  (same  in  Mahbettu). 
ebugu  angebi. 


838  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


In  previous  chapters  I have  alluded  to  the  interesting  dis- 
covery first  made  by  Grenfell,  and  subsequently  confirmed  by 
Stapleton,  that  the  Mpombo 1 or  Banza  people  dwelling  between 
the  River  Lua  and  the  western  Mubangi,  north  of  the  3rd 
degree  of  N.  Lat.,  spoke  a dialect  which  was  emphatically  not  a 
Bantu  language.  Upon  comparing  Grenfell’s  list  of  words  and 
numerals  of  the  Mpombo  or  western  Banza  with  various 
languages  to  the  north  and  east,  I discovered  that  “ Mpombo  ” 
bore  a marked  resemblance  in  one  direction  only,  and  that  to 
the  Mundu  of  the  Egyptian  Sudan. 

The  Mundu  is  spoken  in  various  dialects  along  the  north- 
eastern borderland  of  the  Congo  basin,  in  and  out  of  a country 
where  the  speech  of  the  inhabitants  mainly  belongs  to  the 
Madi,  Nyamnyam,  and  Manbettu  language  families.  So  far 
as  I am  aware,  no  dialect  of  Mundu  has  been  recorded  from 
farther  west  than  the  27th  degree  of  E.  Long.  ; and  from  here 
to  the  point  where  N.  Lat.  30  30'  cuts  the  Mubangi  would  be  a 
distance  of  about  seven  hundred  miles.  Of  course  there  may  be 
intervening  languages  akin  to  both,  or  it  may  be  ultimately 
shown  that  Mundu , Banza , Sango , Nyamnyam , Ndonga, 
Manbettu , Bamanga , Mbuba,  etc.,  etc.,  are  all  members  of  a vast 
network  of  Central  African  languages  akin  in  some  degree  to 
the  Bantu  language  in  phonology  and  even  in  grammar,  but 
offering  little  or  no  resemblance  in  word-roots  (other  than  in 
the  case  of  mutually  borrowed  words). 

As  regards  the  resemblances  in  the  accompanying  vocabu- 
laries \_Mpombo  mainly  by  Grenfell ; Mundu  by  J ohnston], 
though  they  are  slight,  they  are  still  sufficiently  marked  to 
point  to  a far-off  relationship  between  a speech  of  the  eastern 
bank  of  the  lower  Mubangi  and  a language  spoken  on  the 
north-eastern  water-parting  between  Nile  and  Congo. 


MPOMBO.2 

Numerals  : — 

1.  bo,  kbu  . 

2.  bisi,  bisi  . 

3.  bala,  bata 

4.  bana 

5.  vwi  . 


MUNDU. 

biri  ( and  in  composition , ngbo). 

gbosu,  bwesu. 

bata. 

bala. 

burvi. 


1 This  name  was  applied  by  Stapleton  (Appendix  V,  p.  314,  Comparative  Hand- 
book of  Congo  Languages).  It  is  of  doubtful  authenticity  in  Stapleton’s  opinion,  and 
may  be  supplanted  later  by  Banza , when  we  know  for  certain  that  the  speech  of  the 
people  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Mubangi  above  30  N.  Lat.  is  the  same  language  as  that 
spoken  by  the  Banza. 

2 The  vocabulary  here  given  was  compiled  by  Grenfell  in  1885,  and  styled  “The 
language  of  the  people  above  Busembe,  Mubangi  River,  between  30  2'  and  30  30'  N. 
Lat.”  A few  words  are  added  from  Stapleton’s  short  list  compiled  in  1897. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  839 


MPOMBO. 

6.  siba,  sita  . 

7.  siema,  sina 

8.  sena 

9.  vwina 

10.  njokwa  . 

MUNDU. 

. mwedia. 

. lorezi. 

. badzena. 

. menewa. 

. njukba  (teke  is 

used  for 1 tens  ’ in  the 

Arm 

plural). 

MPOMBO. 

ngubu 

MUNDU. 

kpa. 

„ below  elbow 

kupe,  or  pe,  or  be  . 

kpa. 

Axe 

koba 

gi  P^ 

Banana 

ndo 

labolo. 

Beads 

lifobo 

— 

Brass  rod 

kunga 

— 

Beard 

samu 

su. 

Box 

longo,  ipoko,  ikunga 

- — 

Boy 

pe  ... 

mbarase. 

Breast 

ka 

ka. 

Bullet 

siba 

— 

Canoe 

ga  ... 

— 

Chin 

beye 

— 

Cloth 

bongo 

bongo. 

Dish 

muli 

— 

Duck 

ngoto 

— 

Ear 

zi  ... 

je,  goje. 

Eye 

nzula,  nzola 

jara. 

Finger 

lekhwe 

dzikpa. 

Fire 

eva 

wa. 

Firewood 

va  ... 

wa. 

Fish 

si  ... 

si. 

Foot 

kwalo,  teno,  pekwano 

kangandera. 

Fowl 

ndun 

ngo. 

Girl 

bosi 

Goat 

be  ... 

meme. 

Gun 

enele 

— 

Hair  of  head 

nsue  njo,  swinzo 

sunju. 

Hand 

tikwe,  tekwe,  pekwa 

dzikpara. 

Head 

njo,  ncu  . 

nju. 

Hippopotamus 

ngondo  . 

kunbare. 

House 

nduka 

kambo. 

Hunger 

gumu 

— 

Iron 

ka  ... 

se. 

Knife 

ke  ... 

— 

Leg  {thigh) 

ku  ... 

lu. 

„ below  knee 

biwa 

. — . 

Lip 

kutuma  . 

komo. 

L ooking-glass 

ndenge  . 

— 

Manioc 

ndembe  or  ngwende 

— 

Man 

mosi,  mevu 

demu,  okpwara 

Neck 

pengo 

pisingoro. 

Nose 

no,  nyo  . 

go. 

840  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Oil 

M POM  BO. 

mu 

MUNDU. 

mo. 

Paddle 

manga 

— 

Parrot 

kuku 

. nwo. 

Palm  wine 

mana 

. fi. 

Rope 

ku  ... 

— 

this  rope 

ku  ndingi 

— 

Sandbank 

mbangu  . 

— 

Shield 

ngo  ... 

. vora. 

Shore  \right 
bank  of 

Mubangi] 

mungo 

— 

Shore  [left 
bank  of 

Mubangi ] 

kuba 

— 

Skin 

koto 

. kora. 

» of  goat 

koto  be  . 

. kora  meme. 

Spear 

mbenga,  mbongo 

. do. 

■Stone 

timi,  ndanga  . 

. teme. 

Sun 

bao 

za. 

Teeth 

ti  ... 

. te. 

Throat 

ngangu  . 

— 

Tongue 

mi  ... 

mi. 

Water 

ngo  ... 

. ngu. 

To  sleep 

laci 

— 

To  eat 

zu  ... 

— 

To  go ' 

ge  ... 

— 

To  drink 

ngu  ... 

— 

To  look  or  see 

siki 

— 

To  sweep 

yabo 

— 

With  regard  to  the  resemblances  between  Sango  and  Mong- 
wandi,  this  is  only  evidenced  so  far  by  a comparison  of  the 
numerals  : — 


SANGO. 

1.  Oko 

2.  Muise 
3-  Ota 

4.  Osio 

5.  Okon 

6.  Omona 

7.  Blambla 

8.  Omiambi  (?  borrowed 

from  Bantu) 

9.  Gumbaya 

10.  Bainoko 

11.  Dunoko 

12.  Dunise 
20.  Baise 
30.  Bainota 
40.  Bainosio 


MONGWANDI. 

1.  Koil 

2.  Sebu 

3.  Mta 

4.  Nsio 

5.  Oko 

6.  Batabata  (?  3 + 3 ?) 

7.  Nsio  bata  (4  4- 3) 

8.  Miamba  (?  borrowed 

from  Bantu  ?) 

9.  Okoasio(5+4) 

10.  Sule 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  841 

As  regards  the  remainder  of  Torday’s  short  vocabulary  of 
Sango,  I can  only  say  it  shows  this  language — and  possibly 
Mongwandi — to  occupy  a very  isolated  position.  For  although 
the  word  for  4 evinces  a resemblance  to  Manbettu , and  another, 
10,  to  Nyamnyam  (besides  the  universal  root  for  3,  which  is  -ta, 
common  to  the  Bantu  family  and  to  so  many  other  groups  of 
Central  and  West  African  speech),  there  is  only  an  occa- 
sional word-root  in  the  vocabulary  that  points  to  any  affinity  ; 
and  these  coincidences  may  be  due  to  deliberately  borrowed  or 
interchanged  words,  just  as  the  numeral  8 — omiambi — may  have 
been  acquired  from  northern  Bantu.1 

Nyamnyam  ( Azancle  and  Makar ka)  numerals  (Johnston, 
Colombaroli,  and  Torday). 

1.  SSL 

2.  Iwet  or  ue. 

3.  Biata. 

4.  Biama  or  dogoibet  (in  the  west). 

5.  Bisue. 

6.  Batisa. 

7.  Batiwet  or  batiwe. 


1 As  Sango  has  never  been  (to  my  knowledge)  illustrated  before,  I append  here 
some  words  from  Torday’s  unpublished  vocabulary  and  one  or  two  collected  by 
Stapleton  : — 


Arm 

timu 

Fowl 

kono 

Palm 

Back 

komo 

Goat 

gasa 

wine 

kuo 

Banana 

fondo 

Grass 

gungu 

Parrot 

kungu 

Beard 

kwambambam 

Ground 

sese 

Pig 

govo 

Belly 

bimu  (cf.  Bantu ) 

Hair 

kwali 

Rain 

gu 

Bird 

hu 

Hand 

timu 

Road 

dege 

Blood 

mene 

Head 

dimu 

Skin 

protremo 

Breast 

me 

Heart 

bemu 

Sky 

dzulu 

Brother 

nyitambi 

Hippo- 

Slave 

ba 

Buffalo 

bita 

potamus  bimba 

Sleep 

dalango 

Buttocks 

gengele 

House 

da  ; also  nzo 

S flake 

mbwo 

Canoe 

ngo 

Hunger 

ge 

Son 

nyikoli 

Chief 

manga 

Knee 

bambagle 

Stick 

keke 

Child 

nyinga 

Knife 

zemo 

Stone 

tene 

„ my 

nyinga-mbi 

Leg 

glemu 

Sun 

la 

Cloth 

bongo 

Leopard 

je,  ije 

Thief 

nji 

Crocodile  gundi 

Lips 

pronyomo 

Thigh 

bundambu 

Day 

bio 

Man 

zu 

Tongue 

mengamu 

Dog 

bu 

Meat 

susu 

Tooth 

temu 

Ear 

mamu 

Moon 

dje 

Tree 

keke 

Elefhant  duli 

Mother 

ma 

Town 

kodro 

Eye 

demo 

Mouth 

yangama 

War 

tu 

Fat 

boh 

Nail  {of 

Water 

ngu 

Father 

mako 

finger) 

zalitimu 

Woman 

wali 

Finger 

litimi 

Navel 

dihema 

Wind 

ya  . 

Fire 

wa 

Neck 

dagum 

f me 

mbi,  mbine 

Fish 

mi 

Night 

bi 

All 

trekwoi  mima 

Foot 

gremu 

Nose 

homo 

This 

su 

Forest 

gunda 

Paddle 

bi 

842  GEORGE  GRENEELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

8.  Batibiata. 

9.  Batibiana. 

10.  Bawet,  bawe. 

11.  Tiborosa  or  bawe-bati-sandeyo-sa. 

12.  Tiboroue  or  bawe-bati-sandeyo  iwe. 

15.  Hira. 

20.  Mbodu-mbodu  or  bororue. 

40.  Aborawiwe  [\ meaning  “two  persons’5)  or  Ziborowe. 

50.  Aborawiwe  na  bawe  or  Bawe-batesindisa. 

100.  Aborau  bisue  or  Borobilie. 


The  Nyctmnyam  speech,  like  so  many  other  language 
families  of  Negroland,  is  apparently  constructed  on  the  quinary 
system  in  its  numerals.  There  was  evidently  a second  or  an 
earlier  root  for  5,  ba , which  by  combination  with  the  first  four 
numerals  and  a copulative  particle  gives  the  present  words  for 
6 [ba-ti-sa  = five  and  one],  7,  8,  9 ; while  10  is  obviously  ‘twice 
5,’  and  there  is  an  independent  word  for  15,  hira.  It  is  very 
probable  that  the  same  has  occurred  in  Manbettu.1 2 


The  Momvu-Mbuba , Lendu , and  Madi  language  types 
(Nos.  6,  7,  and  9)  in  my  present  list  are  sufficiently  illustrated  for 
purposes  of  general  comparison  in  my  Uganda  Protectorate , 
but  for  convenience  of  reference  I give  their  numerals  here  : — 


MBUBA.3 4 

1.  edi,  mwedi,  tsitse 

2.  agbe 

3.  ecena,  or  -na 

4.  ecero,eceto,^-zo 

5.  ecembo  or  -mbo 

6.  manca  or  matya 

(cf.  Mundu)  . 

7.  laludu  or  arudi 

(cf.  Mundu)  . 

8.  lalo  or  raro 

9.  abu  - tsuhwa  or 

mini-du 


LENDU.3 

di,  tsi  [in  composition)  alo. 

. eri,  iri. 


MADI. 


ru 

bau 

thau 

mbu 

za  . 

arubwo  . 
rrr  (a  trilt) 


na. 

su. 

tou,  to,  tau,  nji. 

azia  [or  nji-kasia). 

aziri  [or  tudieri,  njigeleri). 
arro  [or  azina  or  njidalana). 


deti 


dritsalo  [or  njidilensu  tfrazisu). 


1 The  Manbettu  language,  so  much  alluded  to  by  Schweinfurth,  so  important  in 
the  study  of  Central  African  philology,  has  never  been  properly  written  down. 
Captain  Guy  Burrows  gives  an  imperfect  vocabulary  of  Manbettu  in  his  work  on 
The  Lci7id  of  the  Pygmies , but  omits  numerals  almost  entirely.  From  notes  in 
Grenfell’s  diary  I have  been  able  to  correct  Stanley’s  list  of  Manbettu  numerals,  as 
presented  on  pages  836-7  ; and  assuming  that  the  word  for  5,  zerna , is  either  a misprint 
or  an  independent  introduction  (as  often  happens),  and  that  the  original  root-word 
was  more  like  Tengwi , we  have  in  the  numerals  6,  9,  and  10  the  rudiments  of  a 
quinary  system. 

2 Closely  allied  to  Momva , a tongue  spoken  farther  to  the  north-west,  for  which 
consult  Dr.  Stuhlmann’s  travels. 

3 Otherwise  called  Drudu  and  Lega. 

4 Including  also  the  dialects  of  Logbwari  and  Avukaya. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  843 


10.  avutsi  or  ki  or 

mini 

1 1.  ki  edi 
20.  iki  akbe 

40.  iki  etsero  . 

50.  iki  etsembo 


de  [cf.  Kimbugu  in 
East  Africa] 
tsiti 

thoujuna  (?  “ four 
fives”) 
thaude  . 
mbude  . 


mudri  or  muddi. 

dri  n’al’o  or  mudri  di  lal’o. 


mudi-’ri. 

mudi-su. 

mudi-to. 


In  neither  Mbuba  nor  Madi  are  there  traces  of  independent 
words  for  ‘ twenty  ’ (as  distinct  from  ‘ twice  ten  ’).  On  the 
other  hand,  the  thoujuna  of  Lendu  certainly  begins  with  a 
syllable  like  ‘ four,’  and  if  the  rest  of  the  word  -juna  is 

an  alternative  term  for  ‘five’  may  mean  ‘four  fives.’  But 
the  other  decades  in  Lendu  are  formed  by  the  use  of  de={  ten.’. 
This  particle  may  be  related  to  the  ’ ddi  or  'dri  which  is  a 
portion  of  the  vocable  for  ‘ten’  in  the  Madi  group.  It  is 
significant  that  the  word  for  ‘ hand  ’ in  Madi  is  also  ddi , dri. 
The  words  for  ‘one’  (edi,  tsitse)  in  Mbuba  resemble  the  term 
for  finger,  Heditsitse , and  also  suggest  some  affinity  with  the 
tsi  (in  ‘one’  and  ‘eleven’)  in  Lendu.  Apparently  3,  4,  and  5 
in  Mbuba  (and  the  speech  of  the  Bambute  dwarfs)  are  preceded 
by  a kind  of  prefix,  ece-  or  etse-.  The  root  for  ‘five,’  mbo , is 
obviously  related  to  the  mbu  of  Lendu  ; and  here  we  have 
turning  up  again  an  old  term  for  both  ‘ five  ’ and  ‘ ten  ’ \bu,  pu, 
bo,  fu,  mbu,  mpii\  which  permeates  all  Equatorial  Africa  from 
Senegambia  to  the  White  Nile.  This  bu  for  ‘ five  ’ or  multiples 
of  five  even  crops  up  in  the  Bantu  dialects  of  the  northern 
Congo,1  or  in  Fernando  Po  and  the  region  of  the  North-West 
Cameroons,  besides  the  languages  of  Guinea.  Note  the  word 
for  ‘ten’  in  Mbuba — avu-tsi:  avu  being  perhaps  an  old  plural 
for  bu  or  mbu  (five),  and  tsi  meaning  ‘one’ — ‘one  lot  of  fives,’ 
‘one  pair  of  fists.’  The  alternative  roots  for  ‘ten’  in  this 
group,  mini  of  the  Bambute  and  ki  or  iki  used  in  Mbuba 
decades  and  teens,  recall  respectively  the  mine,  mene  of  Kuamba, 
that  strange  and  interesting  language  of  northern  Ruwenzori, 
and  the  digi-  of  Lihuku  (north-west  Semliki).  The  root  mine 
even  penetrates  to  the  Cameroons,  and  may  finally  expire  in 
the  mie  of  Fernando  Po. 

A feature  which  is  noteworthy  in  the  construction  of  the 
numerals  of  so  many  African  languages  of  the  Equatorial  belt 
between  Senegambia  and  Somaliland,  a phase  which  to  a 
lesser  extent  affects  the  Bantu  languages,  is  the  multiplicity  of 
word-roots  for  conclusive  numerals  like  five,  ten,  fifteen,  twenty. 

1 Cf.  ebumoti,  <^muti  (five-one),  ma -bo,  la -bo  (‘fives,’  i.e.  ten)  in  Babua,  Babati, 
Soko,  etc. ; bwe-  or  bwesi  for  ‘ twenty,’  ‘ twenties  ’ in  Kuamba. 


844  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

I term  these  figures  “ conclusive  ” because  in  all  these  regions 
of  Africa  (to  say  nothing  of  the  rest  of  the  world)  counting  is 
so  obviously  based  on  fingers  and  toes.1  So  much  is  this  the 
case  in  Equatorial  Africa  that  one  explanation  of  the  extra- 
ordinary divergence  in  existing  words  for  numerals  between 
tribe  and  tribe,  otherwise  related,  is  the  tendency  to  hark  back 
to  the  fingers  and  toes  in  counting.  A community  of  people 
may  by  degrees  accustom  themselves  to  the  invention  of  special 
words  for  six,  seven,  eight,  nine,  and  ten — sudden  jumps  to 
totally  new  terms  quite  unconnected  with  any  root  meaning 
five  ; or,  after  they  have  substituted  special  words  for  six, 
seven,  eight,  nine,  they  may  still  leave  in  their  expression  for 
ten  the  trace  of  its  having  been  a plural  of  five,  or  this  trace 
may  crop  up  in  other  multiples  of  five,  such  as  fifteen  or 
twenty.  Yet  some  change  of  fashion  or  circumstances  arises, 
and  suddenly  a people  speaking  a fairly  well-developed, 
abstruse  language  like  Nyamnyam  will  revert  to  direct  allu- 
sions to  the  fingers  or  the  body  for  their  numerals.2 

In  these  Equatorial  African  languages  an  old  word  for  five 
may  be  cast  aside  in  favour  of  an  entirely  new  term,  which 
perhaps  may  mean  ‘ fist  ’ or  ‘ one  hand,’  or  something  of  that 

1 The  Rev.  W.  H.  Stapleton,  in  his  study  of  the  northern  Congo  Bantu 
languages,  supplies  this  note  as  to  finger-counting  : — 

“ On  the  Upper  River  calculation  is  done  principally  by  the  aid  of  the  fingers  ; 
the  counter  makes  the  proper  sign,  and  the  person  addressed  supplies  the  numeral. 
Thus  in  Ngala  : ‘Ngele5  (brass  rods),  says  the  speaker,  and  holds  up  his  fingers 
giving  the  sign  for  the  number.  Sometimes  the  person  speaking  makes  the  sign, 
and  supplies  the  leading  syllable,  as  ‘ Oteni  miete  boi?’  [How  many  trees  hast  thou 
cut?]  asks  one;  ‘Mi-’  responds  the  person,  holding  up  three  fingers;  ‘-tatu,’  says 
the  other,  thus  completing  the  numeral  mi-tatu,  three. 

“ The  following  are  the  signs  in  use  amongst  the  Bangala  : — 

Raising  the  index  finger  ..... 

„ „ with  the  next 

Raising  the  three  last  fingers  .... 

Raising  the  four  fingers  in  pairs,  divided  by  the  thumbs 
inserted  at  the  roots  of  the  fingers 
Raising  the  four  fingers  and  the  thumb 
The  sign  for  three  on  each  hand  .... 

The  sign  for  four  on  one  hand  and  three  on  the  other 
The  sign  for  four  on  both  hands  .... 

The  sign  for  five  on  one  hand  and  four  on  the  other 
Clap  both  hands  together,  or  double  up  one  fist 
Two  claps  of  the  hands,  or  shake  of  the  fist 

And  so  on. 

“The  signs  differ  in  the  several  languages.  Thus  the  Ngombe  shuts  one  fist 
for  five,  and  for  seven  beats  the  back  of  the  four  fingers  of  one  hand  on  the  front  of 
three  in  the  other  hand,  etc.” 

2 Father  Colombaroli,  in  his  study  of  the  Azande  or  Nyamnyam  language  (Cairo, 
1895),  finds  many  allusions  to  fingers,  toes,  and  “whole  men”  in  the  Nyamnyam 
numerals.  But  the  present  writer  cannot  agree  with  all  his  etymologies,  though  this 
theory  deserves  examination.  The  Rev.  W.  G.  Robertson  writes  on  this  subject  in 
his  Handbook  of  the  Bemba  Language  (p.  53),  and  Mr.  E.  W.  Smith  in  connection 
with  the  northern  Zambezi  people  (Grammar  of  the  lla  Language , p.  66). 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  845 


kind,  but  the  older  designation  of  five  will  still  linger  in  the  for- 
mation  of  the  succeeding  numerals,  six,  seven,  eight,  and  nine. 
Nine  is  frequently  expressed  by  a phrase  meaning  ‘ten  less  one.’ 
Twenty  is  not  infrequently  a wholly  different  word  to  ten, 
whether  or  no  it  can  be  traced  back  to  ‘four  fives’;  and  in 
calculation  after  twenty  the  succeeding  decades  will  be 
numbered  by  scores  or  scores  and  ten.  Thus  forty  will  be 
‘two  twenties,’  eighty  ‘four  twenties,’  a hundred  ‘five  twenties.’ 
Sometimes  there  is  a special  word  for  fifty,  and  not  infre- 
quently a peculiar  term 
for  fifteen. 

In  the  subsequent  re- 
view of  the  Bantu  lan- 
guages of  the  Congo 
basin  it  will  be  seen  that, 
although  they  are  gene- 
rally faithful  to  one  root- 
word  expressive  of  five, 
they  have  often  two  alter- 
native terms  for  ten,  tens. 

This  idea  in  speech 
can  of  course  be  paral- 
leled in  the  languages  of 
Europe  and  of  Asia.  We 
are  accustomed  to  speak 
of  a ‘ score  ’ and  a ‘ tithe  ’ 
as  well  as  of  ‘ twenty  ’ 
and  ‘ ten,’  a ‘ century  ’ as 
well  as  a ‘ hundred.’ 


478.  THE  REV.  WILLIAM  FORFEITT 

(Jf  all  the  known  non- 

Bantu  languages  the  group  (No.  5)  which  I have  styled 
N donga- Bamanga  penetrates  farthest  south  into  the  Congo 
basin,  as  can  be  seen  by  a reference  to  my  ethnographical 
map.  Bondonga  or  Ndonga  occupies  the  south-eastern  por- 
tion of  the  Mongala  basin  (its  northern  limits  are  unknown), 
and  the  Bamanga 1 language  ranges  from  the  upper  Lindi 
River  on  the  north-east  to  the  vicinity  of  the  Lomami  on 
the  south-west.  These  two  related  and  very  peculiar  forms 


1 Bamanga , like  Ndonga , may  be  a Bantu  appellation.  Bakinnu  and  Bamanga 
were  formerly  used  by  most  travellers  indifferently  for  the  same  people  (apparently) 
and  language.  Stapleton  started  by  attempting  to  discriminate  between  Bakumu 
and  Bamanga,  but  gave  it  up  ; but  Vice-Consul  G.  B.  Michell  has  now  shown  that 
the  Bakumu  of  the  Chopo  River  are  quite  distinct  from  the  Bamanga  and  speak  a 
degraded  Bantu  dialect. 


846  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

of  non- Bantu  speech  are  therefore  completely  cut  off  one 
from  the  other  by  a band  of  Bantu  dialects  some  two  hun- 
dred and  seventy  miles  broad.  The  Bakumu  and  Bamanga 
tribes  have  been  known  by  name  to  geography  since  Stanley’s 
journey  down  the  Congo  in  1877.  Stuhlmann  was  probably 
the  first  traveller  to  suspect  the  Bamanga  of  not  being  Bantu 
in  their  speech,  but  the  late  Rev.  W.  H.  Stapleton,  B.M.S.,  was 
the  first  to  prove  this  interesting  fact  by  a study  of  their 
language.  Stapleton  attributed  the  use  of  a similar  dialect  to 
the  western  Bakumu,  but  he  may  have  been  in  error.  In  1907 
the  Rev.  William  Forfeitt,  B.M.S.,  of  Bopoto,  northern  Congo, 
sent  home  a small  fragment  of  the  Bondonga  or  Ndonga 
language,  and  an  examination  of  these  few  words  will  soon 
reveal  not  only  its  absolutely  non- Bantu  character,  but  its 
affinities  with  the  dialect  of  the  Bamanga. 

Here  are  the  Ndonga  and  Bamanga  numerals  : — 


NDONGA. 

BAMANGA. 

I. 

Ewimi 

-ima 

2. 

Bine 

Bini,  sini,  or  bine,  etc. 

3- 

Bela 

Biala 

4- 

Ififi 

Anbuti 

5- 

ICabe 

Buma 

6. 

Ibebela 

Tetele 

7- 

Ifibela 

Moti  isini 

8. 

Sebiara 

9- 

Dibwa  {Bantu) 

Sianbuti 

10. 

Akalabe 

Obusa,  abusa,  kami  {v.  p.  865) 

1 1. 

„ te  wimi 

— 

12. 

„ „ bine 

— 

G. 

„ „ bela 

— 

14- 

„ „ ififi 

— 

15- 

Akalabe  te  kabe 

— 

1 6. 

„ „ ibebela 

— 

17- 

„ „ ifibela 

— 

18. 

„ „ ifififi 

— 

19. 

„ „ dibwa 

— 

20. 

Litindale 

Kami  bini 

30. 

„ t’akelabe 

— 

40. 

Matindase  bisene 

— 

50. 

„ „ t’akalabe 

Kami  buma 

60. 

„ bela 

— 

70. 

„ „ t’akalabe 

— 

80. 

„ ififi 

— 

90. 

„ „ t’akalabe 

— 

100. 

„ kabe 

— 

The 

real  root  of  numeral  ‘ one  ’ appears  to  be  -mi  (in 

Bamang 

a it  is  - ima ),  and  of  ‘two,’ 

the  particle  -ne  (ni  or  ne  in 

LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  847 

Bamanga).  Ewi-  and  bi-  are  perhaps  prefixes,  like  the  u or  hu 
and  the  bi-  of  Bamanga.  The  word  for  ‘ three  ’ [be la,  biala ) 
may  be  related  to  the  widespread  -la  or  ta  of  Western  Equatorial 
Africa.  The  words  for  ‘four,’  ‘five,’  and  ‘ten’  [‘six/  ‘seven/ 
and  ‘ eight  ’ are  only  reduplications  of  previous  numerals]  are 
quite  peculiar.  ‘ Six  ’ in  Bamanga  ( tetele ) is  not  easily  ex- 
plained, unless  it  is  an  idiotism  derived  from  Bebela.  ‘Nine’ 
in  Ndonga  is  borrowed  from  the  Bantu,  and  also  the  root  for 
‘ twenty  ’ ( litinda ) and  the  ‘ twenties  ’ 1 ; but  these  are  supplied 
with  special  suffixes  peculiar  to  Ndonga -Bamanga  speech. 
The  conjunctive  particle  te-  suggests  the  similar  particle  ti- 
used  in  combining  numerals  in  Nyamnyam.  The  word  for 
‘four’  in  Bamanga  is  altogether  peculiar.  ‘Five’ — buma — 
is  apparently  a combination  of  the  widespread  root  bu  and  -ma 
( = ‘ one  ’) : ‘ one  five/  ‘ one  fist/  The  alternative  root  for  ‘ ten  ’ 
— kami — may  be  related  to  the  kama  of  some  north-east 
Congo  Bantu  languages  or  be  related  to  the  kabe  (=‘five’)  or 
akalabe  (=‘ten’)  of  Ndonga.  The  following  are  a few  words 
and  phrases  in  Ndonga,  with  comparisons  added  to  show  the 
resemblance  in  the  Bamanga  speech  : — 


bee 

bees 

children 

cow 

dog 

father 

food 

goat 

hoe 

house 

houses 

leopard 

leopards 

man  (male) 

man  (a  person) 

persons 

sheep 

woman  (female) 
women  (females) 
I,  me 
thou, thee 
he,  she,  him 
we,  us 
ye,  you 
they 


huonge 

huose 

deye 

bokolimba 

bala  {Bamanga,  bia) 

eba  ; ta  ( „ ata,  mata,  tumu) 

agwiye 

meme  {Bamanga,  meme) 

motumu  {Bantu) 

sika 

sikeye 

mambikola  {Bamanga,  biu-ki) 

„ ( „ biu-si) 

kwanda 

ndoa-nge  {Bamanga,  njwa-ge) 
ndo-se  ( „ njwa-si) 

bata  {Bantu) 
jua  {Bamanga,  ju) 
jue-ye  ( „ ju-bi) 

ne  {Bamanga,  no) 
mo  ( „ mo,  mu) 

me  {Bamanga,  ndi) 

nu  ( i) 

na  ( „ nya) 

lame  ( „ be) 


1 See  page  864. 


848  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

One  good  house  = Sika  ewimi  mba.  Three  good  houses  = Sikeye 
bela  mba.  Two  houses  = Sikeye  bine.  Many  houses  = Sikeye  egugwa. 
A good  dog  = Bala  mba.  My  father  =Eba  ta  ne.  Thy  father  = Ta  ta 
ma.  His  father  = Ta  ta  ikime.  Our  father  = Ta  ta  nu.  Your  father  = 
Ta  ta  na.  Their  father  = Ta  ta  lame.  Thy  house  = Sika  tamo.  Thy 
dog  = Bala  tamo.  Our  goats  = Meme  iki  nu.  Their  goats  •-=  Meme  iki 
lame.  Your  sheep  = Bata  ta  na.  Our  children  = Deye  ta  nu.  Give 
me  = Aho  ne  (. Bamanga , ho  = give).  I gave  thee  = Ne  ’ho  mo.  I gave 
thee  not  = Tse  ne  aho  mo.  We  shall  not  sell  food  = Nu  itse  delazage 
agwiye.  Thou  dost  not  love  me  = Mo  itse  moyege  ne.  He  laughs  = Me 
liyolo.  He  laughs  not=  Tse  me  yolo  ge.  We  fall  = Nu  tete  (Bamanga, 
te  = fall).  We  do  not  fall  = Tse  nu  te  ge.  Ye  dance  = Na  liyabe 
(Bamanga,  dance  = langwa).  Ye  dance  not  = Itse  na  ya  ge.  They 
kill  = Lame  liwingeu  (Bamanga,  kill  = kwi).  They  do  not  kill  = Lame 
tse  kwinge  ge. 

The  resemblances  between  the  details  of  this  short  vocabulary 
and  such  record  as  we  have  of  Bamanga  are  few,  but  significant. 
Unfortunately  in  Mr.  Stapleton’s  manuscript  vocabulary  of 
Bamanga  the  numerals  (all  but  ‘ one  ’ and  ‘ two  ’)  are  missing, 
as  well  as  the  pronouns  ; but  these  have  been  kindly  supplied 
to  me  by  Mr.  G.  B.  Michell.1  It  is  obvious  that  N donga 
(though  it  is  possibly  a more  altered  and  influenced  language) 
has  much  the  same  syntax  as  Bamanga,  and  forms  its  singular 
and  plural  by  varying  suffixes — nge  and  se,  a and  eye. 

The  first  two  of  these  corresponds  to  the  ki, gi,  or  ge  (sing.) 
and  si  or  se  of  the  Bamanga  (tijwage  = a man,  njwase  = men; 
nzinoge  = a lung,  nzinose  = the  lungs;  biu-ki=  a leopard,  biusi 
= leopards;  kwegi=  a louse,  kwesi=  lice).  -A  and  eye  are  not  so 
easily  paralleled,  though  in  Bamanga  there  are  words  like  komb-a 
which  form  their  plural  thus  : kombe. 

The  following  short  list  of  words  in  Bamanga  may  serve 
to  give  some  idea  of  the  affinities  and  structure  of  the 
language  : — 


all 

bomuna 

banana 

bogo 

amidst 

ngwegi 

PI. 

boge 

and 

te 

be  (to  be) 

ku 

animal 

noigi 

bear,  to 

zu 

PI. 

noisi 

beard 

sa 

arm 

kwe-ki 

beat,  to 

kio 

PI. 

kwe-si 

belly 

yali 

left  arm 

kwe  kobe 

PI. 

yasi 

right  arm 

kwe  ange 

bewitch,  to 

kumami 

arrow 

jili 

big 

goi 

PI. 

jisi 

beard 

nui 

bad 

sisige 

bite 

nomo 

1 H.B.M. 

Consul,  Paris  ; formerly  Vice-Consul  on  the  Congo. 

LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  849 


blood 

izima 

food 

ze 

PI. 

izimi 

(flesh  is  muni) 

bone 

bebi 

foot 

hwamba 

bow 

jeli 

forest 

za 

PL 

jesi 

fowl 

ngoi 

brain 

mbuli 

give,  to 

ho 

PL 

mbusi 

go,  to 

do 

break,  to 

geme 

goat 

meme 

brother 

ngwondo-ge 

good 

dobo 

PL 

ngwondo-bi 

hare 

mbesi 

buffalo 

gwage 

hand 

labeke 

PL 

gwasi 

hat 

pu 

build,  to 

su 

PL 

pi  . 

buttocks 

ngweni 

he 

ndi 

PL 

ngwesi 

head 

mbia-la 

by 

yi 

PL 

mbie-si 

camwood 

ngu 

heart 

jua-ni 

PL 

ngi 

PL 

jua-si 

canoe 

ku 

hippo- 

PL 

kusi 

potamus 

ndifo 

chief 

joma 

PL 

ndifi 

PL 

jome 

hoe 

yembe 

child 

bia 

honey 

kanozi 

PL 

bibi 

house 

lage 

chin 

ngaga 

I 

no 

PL 

ngage 

in 

-ni  (locative 

come,  to 

bo 

suffix) 

cook, to 

no 

knife 

ko,  ke 

crocodile 

ngonde 

leg 

ku 

die,  to 

kwi 

leopard 

biu 

dying 

kwigi 

little 

side 

dog 

bia 

love 

kunda 

PI. 

be 

male 

kia 

down 

chu 

man 

njwa 

dream,  to 

do 

young  man  ngonjo 

drink,  to 

nju 

PL 

ngonje 

ear 

jombo-je 

medicine 

hwi 

PL 

jombe 

moon 

he,  or  ihe 

eat,  to 

zo 

mother 

aiya 

elephant 

nge  ^ 

name 

de  (deli,  desi) 

evil 

sisigi 

nose 

ohombo 

eye 

la,  or  lali 

PL 

ohombe 

PL 

Iasi 

oil 

suku 

face 

sibe-le 

paddle 

kofi  (kofi-gi, 

PL 

sibe-si 

kob-bi)  (Bantu) 

fall,  to 

te 

permit, 

female 

iu,  or  jwi 

allow 

a,  a 

finger 

teli 

poison 

PL 

tesi 

ordeal 

zeme 

fire 

uwu 

rain 

mba 

fish 

siso 

river 

lindi 

II. — 2 A 


850  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


road 

kwa 

to-day 

mide 

PI. 

kwe 

toe 

tele 

salt 

to  (tome,  tote) 

PI. 

tesi 

see,  to 

hu 

tongue 

mine 

sell,  to 

ma 

PI. 

mise 

send,  to 

li 

tooth 

te  (teki,  pi.  tesi) 

sew,  to 

hlo 

tree 

ga  (gal',  gasi) 

sheep 

shield 

nodogo 

ngubu  {Bantu) 

war 

to  make 

go 

sleep 

na 

war 

be 

snake 

kia 

water 

ngome 

stick 

ijoli 

wife 

mwigi 

stone 

nga 

witch 

koma 

take,  to 

to 

PI. 

kome 

thief 

hzi 

woman 

ju 

thing 

gobe 

PI. 

jwi 

one  thing  gobe  ima 
two  things  gobe  bine 

work,  to 

hwa 

The  singular  and  plural  of  nouns  in  Bamanga  is  formed  by 
suffixes.  Apparently  the  root  of  the  noun  remains  unaffected 
by  these  changes  except  in  regard  to  the  terminal  vowel,  which 
in  some  instances  changes  from  a , o,  or  it  in  the  singular  to  e 
or  i in  the  plural  (thus  : ngombo-ge , an  axe,  becomes  ngombe-bi , 
axes  ; komba , master,  is  in  the  plural  kombe ; uya,  pi.  uye  (flea) ; 
ngungu , pi.  ngunge  (sugar-cane) ; bwubwu , pi.  bwnbi  (hill).  The 
principal  suffixes  are  as  follows  : — 

SINGULAR.  PLURAL. 

ki,  gi,  or  ge  si 

li,  ne,  ni  si 

ge  bi 

mi,  me  bi  or  te 

In  addition  to  this  suffix,  there  is  apparently  a kind  of 
“ concord  ” which  applies  to  the  numerals  ‘ one 9 and  ‘ two,’  and 
perhaps  ‘ three,’  ‘ four,’  and  ‘ five  ’ ; but  not  to  adjectives  likewise 
(as  it  does  in  Bantu). 

Thus  ‘a  good  man’  is  njwa  ciobo  (dobo  = good) ; but  ‘one 
man’  is  njwa  uma  (-ma=‘one  j ; ‘two  men’  is  njwe  bine  (-ne 
= ‘two’).  ‘One  canoe’  is  kit  or  kuki  kima ; kusi  sine  =‘  two 
canoes.’  Mbolo  uma='  one  cord’;  mboli  bine  = ‘ two  cords.’ 
Jomboge  gima,  ‘ one  ear  ’ ; jombebi  bine  = ‘ two  ears.’  Teli  lima  = 

‘ one  finger  ’ ; tesi  sine=‘  two  fingers.’  Cone  lima  = ‘ one  neck  ’ ; 
co  si  sine=‘  two  necks.’  Tome  mima  = ' one  (lot  of)  salt’;  tote 
bine  = ‘ two  (lots  of)  salt.’  Keke  huma=‘  one  rib’;  keke  bine  = 

‘ two  ribs.’ 

The  concord  particles  therefore  in  the  singular  number  seem 
to  be  u-  or  hu-,  ki-  or  gi-,  mi-  or  me  ; in  the  plural,  bi-  or  si-. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  851 

There  are  one  or  two  irregular  plurals  in  Mr.  Stapleton’s 
list.  Bebia , ‘a  place,’  has  bobe  as  plural  ; bolo,  ‘rope,’  becomes 
belo ; siso,  ‘a  fish,’  soso,  ‘fishes’;  bia , a ‘child,’  bibi,  ‘children’; 
pu,  ‘ hat,’  pi , ‘ hats.’ 

In  the  personal  pronouns,  the  N donga  language  (the  pro- 
nouns of  Bamanga  are  only  imperfectly  recorded  by  Stapleton) 
offers  a certain  resemblance  to  Nyamnyam.  A few — very  few 
— of  the  word-roots  in  Bamanga  are  shared  by  Manbettu , 
Mpombo,  Mundn , Mbuba , and  by  the  Bantu  family.  Some  of 
the  last  may  be  borrowed  words.  It  is  remarkable  that  with  the 
exception  of  one  or  two  verbs  expressing  fundamental  ideas, 
most  of  the  “ Bantu  ” roots  in  Ndonga  and  especially  in 
Bamanga  are  names  for  implements  (such  as  hoe  or  paddle)  or 
domestic  animals,  although  the  Bamanga  forest  people  were 
rather  more  aborigines  than  the  Bantu  invaders  and  had 
received  some  additional  civilization  at  their  hands.  The 
Bamanga  word  for  ‘ river  ’ is  interesting — ‘Lindi.’  This  root 
expressing  a river  (Lulindi,  Malindi,  Ndindi,  Kilindi)  appears 
not  infrequently  in  the  geography  of  Bantu  Africa,  and  may  be 
an  indication  of  the  prior  presence  of  Bamanga-speaking 
autochthones.  On  the  whole  the  Bamanga  affinities  lie  mostly 
with  the  Mundzt  group. 

With  the  exception  of  the  coast-lands  of  Tanganyika  or  the 
Bukonjo  highlands  bordering  Lake  Albert  Edward,  the  Congo 
basin  and  the  whole  of  West  Africa  does  not  now  include  a 
single  Bantu  dialect  of  the  “first  class,”  of  the  most  archaic 
type  as  represented  in  the  regions  of  the  Great  Lakes  or  the 
western  watershed  of  the  Zambezi.  The  four  great  foci  of 
pure  Bantu  speech  at  the  present  day  are  (1)  the  territories 
of  the  Uganda  Protectorate  [from  the  Congo  watershed  to 
Mount  Elgon],  (2)  the  south-western  coast  of  Tanganyika 
(especially  the  Bemba  language),  (3)  the  north  end  of  Lake 
Nyasa,  and  (4)  the  south-western  Zambezi  (Subiya)  and  thence 
to  Damaraland. 

I have  already  suggested  that  the  existing  Bantu  languages 
of  the  Congo  may,  for  the  most  part,  be  properly  classified  in 
three  great  groups — those  of  the  First , Second ’ and  Third 
invasions.  The  languages  of  the  First  Invasion , which  occupy 
the  northern  half  of  the  Congo  basin  and  extend  westwards 
to  the  Atlantic  coast  of  the  Cameroons  and  the  Gaboon  and 
to  the  island  of  Fernando  Pd,  are  the  most  corrupt.  Their 
northward  range  is  that  of  the  Bantu  family  ; on  the  east  they 
are  bounded  (very  nearly)  by  the  line  of  the  Nile-Congo  water- 


852  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

parting  and  that  of  the  Lualaba-Congo  and  of  Tanganyika  (the 
Mwalega  or  Kilega  of  the  Balega  people  is  a language  of 
the  Second  Invasion,  though  it  penetrates  the  watershed  of 
the  Lualaba-Congo  between  the  rivers  Elila  and  Lulindi).  The 
southern  limits  of  the  present  extent  of  the  First  Invasion 
languages  are  less  certain  of  definition.  Beginning  on  the  east, 
their  boundary  line  would  be  approximately  S.  Lat.  4°  20'  as 
far  west  as  the  River  Kwango,  and  thence,  with  a slight 
dip  to  the  south,  the  divisional  line  between  the  Bateke 
peoples  and  the  Bakongo,  striking  the  western  Congo  a few 
miles  south  of  Stanley  Pool.  Thence  the  line  would  cross  the 
Congo,  follow  the  Niadi  River  for  some  distance  and  then  the 
Nyanga,  until  the  Atlantic  coast  was  reached  in  the  Sete  Kama 
country. 

Every  Bantu  language  spoken  to  the  south  of  this  line  may 
be  considered  to  belong  in  general  to  the  group  classified  as 
that  of  the  Second  Invasion , though  in  the  kingdom  of  Kongo 
and  the  triangle  between  the  Kwango  and  the  lower  Kasai  the 
influences  of  First  and  Second  Inyasion  mingle  considerably. 
The  influence  of  this  Second  Invasion  extends  as  far  to  the 
south-west  as  Damaraland,  and  includes  the  wonderfully  in- 
teresting language  of  the  Ova-herero,  besides  perhaps  the 
principal  forms  of  speech  in  the  northern  and  western  basin  of 
the  Zambezi. 

The  territory  occupied  by  the  languages  of  the  Third 
Invasion , those  which  are  in  the  main  of  the  most  archaic 
type  of  existing  Bantu  languages,  is  (as  already  noted)  a very 
small  portion  of  the  Congo  basin  on  the  north-east  and  east. 
This  group  continues  its  range  southwards  along  the  east  coast 
of  Tanganyika,  to  the  Zambezi  and  onwards  to  South  and 
South-East  Africa. 

There  are  of  course  necessary  compromises  with  these 
theories  [which  in  the  main  will  be  found  to  work  very  well 
for  a classification  in  general  of  the  Bantu  languages,  and  in 
a general  purview  of  that  family  of  speech  might  be  more  con- 
veniently described  as  North-West  ( = First  Invasion),  South- 
Central  ( = Second  Invasion),  and  East  African  ( = Third  In- 
vasion)] : one  group  may  overlie  another,  there  may  be  an 
interchange  of  words  or  numerals  or  an  imitation  of  prefixes;  or 
isolated  languages  may  preserve  archaic  features  lost  in  the 
other  members  of  the  group,  and  yet  be  more  properly  classified 
as  belonging  (in  the  majority  of  their  features)  to  one  of  the 
three  cohorts. 

For  example,  the  Kongo  language  spoken  along  the 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  853 

western  Congo,  both  north  and  south,  is  a language  of  the 
Second  Invasion  in  its  history  and  features,  and  is  more  nearly 
allied  to  the  speech  of  Benguela,  Lunda,  Luba,  and  even 
Damaraland  than  it  is  to  Teke,  or  to  the  languages  of 
the  Gaboon  or  Cameroons.  Yet  it  also  represents  a 
compromise,  and  obviously  overlies  (and  has  absorbed) 
existing  dialects  belonodnof  to  the  First  Invasion  which  had 
occupied  territory  to  the  south  of  the  western  Congo,1  but  had 
not  penetrated  far  into  Angola.  Some  of  the  Angola  dialects, 
specially  those  on  the  middle  Kwango  and  to  the  south  of  the 
River  Kwanza,  have  developed  peculiar  features  of  their  own. 
Nevertheless  in  the  majority  of  points  they  belong  to  the 
group  of  the  Second  Invasion,  and  can  scarcely  be  said  to 
constitute  an  independent  and  fourth  section  of  the  Bantu 
family.  Oci-herero  of  Damaraland  retains  archaic  features 
found  in  the  East  African  Bantu,  in  Zulu,  and  perhaps  also  in 
the  speech  of  Uganda  and  Unyoro;  yet  in  its  numerals  and 
in  the  majority  of  its  word-roots  it  belongs  emphatically  to 
West  Africa,  and  is  more  allied  with  the  languages  of  the 
Second  Invasion,  of  which  it  was  probably  one  of  the  pioneers. 

The  Kirundi  lancruaoe  of  northern  and  north-eastern  Tan- 

00 

ganyika  is  a language  of  the  Third  Invasion  of  the  East 
African  Bantu,  yet  it  has  transitional  forms  in  its  numerals  and 
vocabularies  which  ally  it  in  a minor  degree  with  the  languages 
of  the  Second  Invasion  that  have  taken  unto  themselves  the 
occupancy  of  the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika,  and  thence  have 
pushed  right  across  the  southern  Congo  basin. 

In  the  speech  of  south-east  Tanganyika,  and  about  the 
Nyasa-Tanganyika  plateau  and  the  Zambezi  borderland,  we 
have  several  groups  of  dialects  not  easy  to  classify  dogmati- 
cally as  belonging  exactly  to  the  eastern  or  south-central 

1 The  Kongo  language  of  to-day  would  seem  to  have  been  derived,  perhaps 
eight  or  nine  hundred  years  ago,  from  invaders  of  the  Atlantic  coast-lands  south 
of  the  Lower  Congo  coming  from  the  middle  or  upper  Kwango,  and  eventually  from 
the  lands  of  the  south-central  part  of  the  Congo  basin.  These  Kongo  invaders,  this 
hunter  aristocracy,  as  their  name  imports,  must  have  found  in  possession  of  the 
western  Congo  coast-lands  races  influenced  by  the  First  Invasion,  speaking  languages 
akin  to  the  Teke  and  the  dialects  of  the  Upper  Congo,  of  the  Ogowe  and  middle 
Cameroons.  These  were  to  some  extent  absorbed,  and  have  left  some  of  their 
distinctive  features  in  the  Kongo  language  of  to-day.  Amongst  these  is  the  use 
of  the  17th  (diminutive)  prefix,  expressed  in  modern  Kongo  by  Fi — a prefix  quite 
foreign  to  the  south-central  and  eastern  Bantu  groups. 

It  is  possible  that  the  invasion  from  the  south-east  which  created  the  language 
and  the  kingdom  of  Kongo  may  have  passed  on  northwards  up  the  coast-line  till  it 
reached  the  Gaboon,  where,  by  a similar  mingling  with  preceding  languages,  it  may 
have  founded  the  rather  peculiar  Mpongwe  tongue,  which  has  certain  features  in  its 
prefixes  and  vocabulary  that  suggest  an  ancient  connection  not  only  with  Kongo,  but 
with  the  more  archaic  Bantu  languages  of  the  south  and  east,  such  as,  for  example, 
the  retention  of  the  loth  prefix  [6Y-  in  Mpongwe,  Zi  or  Tsi  in  original  Bantu]. 


854  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Bantu.  A complete  examination  of  these  would  turn  the  scale 
in  one  or  other  direction.  Of  a like  nature  also  is  the  still 
greater  problem  of  Zulu  and  Chuana.  The  East  African 
proclivities  of  the  numerous  Bechuana  dialects  or  languages 
are  perhaps  more  obvious  than  their  connection  with  South- 
central  Bantu,  but  in  the  case  of  Zulu  the  affinities  are  very  nicely 
balanced.  If  it  were  not  for  the  intimate  [though  not  always 
easily  detected]  relationship  between  the  Zulu  and  the  Chuana 
groups  and  the  affinities  between  Zulu  and  the  Zambezi-Nyasa 
dialects — both  of  which  connections  link  the  highly  aberrant 
Bantu  languages  of  southernmost  Africa  with  the  eastern 
section — it  might  almost  have  been  necessary  to  classify  the 
Zulu- Kaffir  language  as  a fourth  and  independent  Bantu  group. 
It  is,  in  any  case,  the  most  divergent  and  independent  of  all 
the  forms  of  Bantu  speech  which  have  sprung  from  the  mother 
language  in  Northern-Equatorial  Africa. 

The  most  convenient  plan  on  which  to  classify  these  three 
groups  (so  far  as  they  occupy  the  Congo  basin  and  the  Cameroons) 
and  to  indicate  their  mutual  affinities  and  divergencies,  is  the 
comparison  of  their  numerals.  But  before  proceeding  to  this 
I might  point  out  some  other  striking  features,  negative  or 
positive,  which  characterize  each  of  the  groups,  and  further 
justify  their  separation  into  three  distinct  cohorts. 

To  make  these  points  and  comparisons  clearer,  it  is  advisable 
to  commence  by  stating  in  a summary  fashion  the  original  plan1 
of  the  Bantu  prefixes  in  their  shortest  form. 


SINGULAR. 

PLURAL. 

1st  prefix  Mu- 

2nd  prefix  Ba- 

3>-d 

Mu- 

4th  „ Mi- 

5 th 

n 

Di- 

6 th  „ Ma- 

7th 

Ki- 

8th  „ Bi- 

9th 

In- 

10th  „ Zi-,  Tsi-,  or  Di- 

i ith 

>> 

Lu-  or  Du- 

12th  ,,  Tu-  (Diminutive) 

13th 

n 

Ka-  (Diminutive) 

14th 

>> 

Bu-  (This  is  sometimes  used  as  a Plural  to  the  13th) 

15th 

)> 

Ku-  (Locative,  meaning  to,  in  the  direction  of ) 

1 6th 

>> 

Pa-  (Locative,  meaning  on,  here') 

17th 

Fi-  or  Si-  (Used  as  a 

Diminutive) 

In  archaic  Bantu  these  prefixes  were — and  in  many  modern 
dialects  are — preceded  by  a further  particle,  especially  when  em- 
ployed in  a definite  sense.  This  for  the  prefixes  i and  3 was  Gu 
( Gu-mu ),  reduced  in  nearly  all  the  languages  existing  at  the 
present  day  to  U-  and  0-.  For  the  2nd  prefix  the  definite  particle 

1 Bleek’s  classification  is  the  only  one  which  has  stood  the  test  of  time. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  855 

was  Ba-  or  Ga -,  reduced  in  almost  all  cases  now  to  A-  (Ada)  ; for 
the  4th  prefix  it  was  Gi  (reduced  in  most  cases  to  /-)  ; for  the 
5th  it  was  I-  or  In-  (. Idi  or  Indi)  ; for  the  6th,  Ga  (Gama,  Ama). 
The  particles  of  the  7th,  8th,  and  10th  were  I-  or  hi-  ; those  of 
the  11th,  1 2th,  and  15th  were  U-  ; of  the  14th,  Bu-  ; of  the  13 th 
and  16th,  A-. 

Now  as  regards  the  languages  of  the  First  Invasion  which 
occupy  the  northern  half  of  the  Congo  basin,  Gaboon,  Came- 
roons,  etc. — 

The  1st,  2nd,  3rd,  4th,  5th,  6th,  7th,  8th,  9th,  1 1 th,  12th, 
and  14th  prefixes  exist  more  or  less  undisturbed,  and  easily 
recognizable.  The  4th  prefix  occasionally  becomes  Ni-  or  /-  ; 
the  3rd  is  sometimes  shortened  into  Ah-  or  U-.  In  Teke  of  the 
Ogowe  and  western  Congo,  in  Mpongwe  of  the  Gaboon,  and  in 
Manyema  and  one  or  two  dialects  of  the  north-eastern  Congo 
the  6th  prefix  may  be  shortened  to  A-.  In  the  languages  of 
the  north-east  Congo  and  of  the  north-centre  ( Lolo-Mongo ),  and 
also  in  the  northern  and  eastern  dialects  of  Fernando  Po,  the 
6th  prefix  becomes  Ba , just  as  in  the  same  groups  the  1st  and 
3rd  may  be  corrupted  into  Bo-  by  a preference  for  the  un- 
nasalized labial. 

It  is  in  the  fih,  ifih,  and  15 th  prefixes  that  the  languages 
of  the  First  Invasion  display  their  most  marked  differences  from 
those  of  the  other  two  groups.  The  13th  prefix,  Ka -,  has 
almost  entirely  died  out  over  the  whole  of  the  immense  region 
occupied  by  the  languages  of  the  First  Invasion,  except  in  the 
speech  of  the  Bagenya } on  the  Congo  above  Stanley  Falls,  and 
in  the  mongrel,  indeterminate  dialects  north  of  the  Sankuru  and 
on  the  lower  Kasai,  which  are  formed  of  a mingling  between 
the  languages  of  the  First  and  Second  Invasion.  The  Ka- 
prefix  is  now  practically  extinct  in  the  Bube  language  of 
Fernando  Po,  but  some  forty  years  ago  still  lingered  in  an 
adverbial  capacity  with  the  numerals  expressive  of  time  (once, 
twice,  thrice,  etc.).1 2  This  absence  of  the  13th  prefix  is  the 
most  marked  feature  of  the  north-western  group,  because  it 
stands  in  abrupt  contrast  to  the  languages  of  the  Second  In- 
vasion, which  make  an  almost  extravagant  use  of  the  1 3th  pre- 
fix, developing  it  from  a diminutive  to  a title  of  affection,  and 
even  of  honour.  It  is  true  that  this  particle  is  nearly  extinct  in 
the  Kongo  language,  but  it  still  lingers  in  a few  words,  and  was 
traditionally  more  in  evidence  several  centuries  ago. 

1 Here  it  takes  the  place  of  the  17th  (St-)  and  has  To - as  plural. 

2 The  Ka-  prefix  may  perhaps  be  traced  still  in  some  of  the  semi-Bantu  languages 
of  North  Cameroons  and  Eastern  Nigeria. 


856  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

The  7th  prefix  (. Ki -)  has  ceased  to  appear  in  its  fullest  form 
in  the  languages  of  the  First  Invasion  (with  very  few  excep- 
tions in  the  east  and  west).  Its  almost  invariable  rendering  is 
in  the  abbreviated  form  of  E-  or  /-.  In  one  form  or  another  it 
is  found  in  all  these  languages.  It  still  appears  as  Ki-  (some- 
times deepened  into  Gi-,  or  by  a vowel  change  becoming  Ke- 
or  Ge -)  in  some  of  the  Cameroons  and  Gaboon  languages, 
notably  in  the  most  north-western  existing  Bantu  languages — 
Barundo  and  Bakasi — from  the  borderland  between  the  Came- 
roons and  the  Cross  River  estuaries.  In  the  Kuamba  of 
Ruwenzori  it  remains  Ki-,  but  in  the  adjoining  Lihuku  has 
crumbled  to  E-  [with  an  irregular  plural,  Di-].  The  Bagenya 
retains  it  as  Ci-,  but  in  Manyema  it  is  reduced  to  /-.  In  the 
Mpongwe  language  of  the  Gaboon,  the  original  full  form  of 
Iki-  \Eki  in  Kongo]  has  become  Ez\  In  this  and  other  Gaboon 
dialects  it  is  often  represented  by  Yi-,  or  Ye-,  and  occasionally 
by  J-.  In  the  semi- Bantu  languages  of  the  Cross  River 
Cameroons  it  occasionally  reappears  in  its  old  form  of  Ki-,  but 
in  Fernando  Po  and  over  the  greater  part  of  the  northern  basin 
of  the  Congo  it  is  one  of  the  commonest  prefixes  in  use,  to- 
gether with  its  plural  Bi -,  and  is  invariably  in  the  form  of  E. 
In  Teke  it  appears  in  one  or  two  nouns  as  Ki-,  but  is  usually 
reduced  to  I- ; and  in  this  form  is  often  confused  with  the 
similar  abbreviation  of  the  17th  prefix. 

The  absence  of  the  10th  prefix  ( Zin - or  Din-,  Zi-  or  Di-)  is 
as  marked  a peculiarity  in  the  languages  of  the  First  Invasion 
as  is  that  of  the  13th  ( Ka -).  In  no  single  language  of  this 
group  are  there  any  traces  of  its  existence,  even  as  a concord 
particle,  except  in  Lihuku  of  the  northern  Semliki,  Bangi  (of 
the  Babangi-Bayanzi),  and  Mpongwe  of  the  Gaboon.  In  Lihuku 
(as  will  be  seen  by  referring  to  the  vocabularies  in  my  Uganda 
Protectorate ) there  is  a plural  prefix  Di-  which  answers  to  a 
singular  E-,  but  there  are  strong  reasons  for  supposing  that 
this  is  a senseless  corruption  of  Bi-,  the  8th  prefix.1  It  is  there- 
fore probable  that  the  original  10th  \_Zi-  or  Di-]  plural  prefix  of 
archaic  Bantu  has  no  existence  in  this  direction,  west  of  the 
Uganda-Unyoro  group.  In  the  language  of  the  Babangi  or 
Bayanzi  its  corresponding  pronominal  particle  lingers  in  the 
form  of  -It-,  derived  from  an  older  -di-. 

On  the  other  hand,  in  Mpongwe  of  the  Gaboon — a language 
with  many  peculiar  features  of  its  own,  and  which  may  have 

1 The  unfortunate  8th  prefix  is  liable  to  the  most  abrupt  transitions  among  the 
Bantu  languages.  In  the  course  of  a generation  it  can  be  changed  from  Bi-  [through 
Pi-,  Fi-,  Si-,  or  Bzi-]  to  Zi-  and  even  Ri-. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  857 

received  some  centuries  ago  an  intermixture  along  the  sea- 
coast  from  the  Kongo  language  of  the  Second  Invasion — the 
10th  prefix  still  lingers  in  the  form  of  Si-  or  Si-. 

The  1 2th  prefix  Tu-  in  the  languages  of  the  First  Invasion 
is  sometimes  corrupted  into  Tso-y  Ru,  or  Lu  ( Ro - or  Lo-),  or 
may  be  even  abbreviated  to  U in  the  Barombi  and  Barundo 
dialects  of  the  North-West  Cameroons,  or  capriciously  changed 
to  Vu-  or  Vo-  (Banoho,  Bapuku  of  the  South  Cameroons  coast); 
but  it  is  scarcely  absent  from  any  one  of  this  great  cohort  of 
languages,  except  Bangi  and  Ngala.  In  all  of  these  it  serves 
as  a plural  to  the  17th  prefix,1  which  as  a diminutive  has  taken 
the  place  of  the  banished  Ka-. 

The  15th  prefix,  Ku-—  possibly  because  it  begins  with  a K — 
is  nearly  as  foreign  to  the  languages  of  the  First  Invasion  as 
the  13th  (a  fact  which  may  be  due  to  intermixture  with  Pygmies, 
who  have  a dislike  to  initial  gutturals).  Where  it  does  linger 
in  the  form  of  O-  it  is  used  as  a preposition  or  a locative.  But 
there  are  more  definite  traces  of  its  existence  in  some  of  the 
Ogowe  languages  ( Go-),  and  it  exists  fully  (in  the  shape  of 
Go-)  in  Mpongwe.  In  Fernando  Po  it  is  used  as  an  infinitive 
and  a locative  in  the  form  of  0-. 

The  Pa-  prefix  ( 1 6th)  has  vanished  from  this  group  except 
as  a preposition.  That  is  to  say,  like  the  15th  and  13th 
prefixes,  even  where  it  lingers  it  has  lost  the  concord  and  the 
right  to  be  called  a prefix.  It  is  merely  a preposition,  and 
in  that  capacity  is  traceable  in  nearly  all  the  languages  of  the 
First  Invasion.  Only,  however,  in  those  of  the  Northern  Gaboon 
coast  does  it  retain  its  ancient  form  of  Pa-.  Elsewhere  it 
softens  into  Fa-,  Va-,  Wa-,  Ha-,  or  A-. 

We  now  come  to  the  consideration  of  the  17th  prefix,  Si- 
ox  Fi,2  the  possession  of  which  is  the  distinguishing  feature  of 

1 In  Kongo  and  Oci-herero  [perhaps  also  in  the  numeral  for  ‘ten,’  ‘tens’  in 
the  North-West  Cameroons  tongues],  Tu-  stands  as  plural  for  the  nth  prefix  (Lu). 

2 The  17th  prefix  of  the  Bantu  languages  is  sufficiently  important  in  matters  of 
geographical  distribution,  relationship,  and  classification  to  deserve  a few  explanatory 
words.  This  prefix  was  unknown  to  Bleek  (or  at  least  unrecognized  by  him)  when  he 
wrote  his  commencement  of  a grammar  of  the  Bantu  languages.  He  did,  it  is  true, 
note  its  appearance  amongst  the  Cameroons  languages  and  that  of  Fernando  Po, 
but  attributed  the  form  it  assumed  to  an  eccentric  variation  from  that  of  the  7th  prefix 
(A7-).  It  was  Holman  Bentley  of  the  Baptist  Mission  who  first,  in  his  Grammar  and 
Dictionary  of  the  Kongo  Language,  established  the  existence  of  this  diminutive  prefix 
(in  the  form  of  Fi-)  as  an  independent  and  consequently  a supernumerary  prefix,  having 
its  own  concord.  He  identified  it  very  rightly  with  the  similarly  employed  diminutive 
prefix — in  the  form  of  Vi of  languages  in  the  Gaboon  and  South  Cameroons. 

The  present  writer,  a few  years  after  Bentley’s  discovery,  found  this  17th  prefix  in 
the  form  of  1-  (or  rarely  Fi-),  in  the  Manyema  dialects  to  the  north-west  of  Tanganyika, 
besides  identifying  it  in  a similar  shape  in  the  Teke  language,  in  numerous  languages 
of  the  Cameroons,  of  Fernando  Po,  and  of  the  semi-Bantu  people  on  the  upper  Cross 
River  and  North-Western  Cameroons.  Professor  Carl  Meinhof  [the  well-known 


858  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  north-west  Bantu  languages,  and  the  most  striking  point 
in  classification  which  separates  this  group  from  the  other 
cohorts  of  Bantu  speech.  This  1 7th  prefix  has  been  adopted 
by  the  Kongo  and  Kakongo  dialects,  but  otherwise  is  com- 
pletely foreign  to  the  Bantu  languages  of  the  Second  and 
Third  Invasions,  to  those  of  East,  South,  and  South-West 
Africa. 

With  regard  to  the  definite  particles  preceding  the  prefixes, 
as  set  forth  on  pages  854-5,  though  these  exist  in  a strongly 
marked  form  in  the  languages  of  South-West  Africa,  the  Zam- 
bezi-Congo  borderland,  and  the  shores  of  Tanganyika,  and  still 
more  so  in  the  languages  of  inner  East  Africa,  they  are  practi- 
cally absent  from  all  the  languages  of  the  First  Invasion , except 
Mpongwe  and  the  Bube  language  of  Fernando  Po.  In  the 
last-named  their  existence  as  definite  articles  is  obvious,  but  in 
Mpongwe  they  have  merely  fused  with  the  prefix  and  are 
“fossilized.”  There  is  a slight  trace  of  them  [fused  with  the 
prefix]  in  Teke. 


The  languages  of  the  Second  and  Third  Invasions  differ 
from  those  of  the  First  in  that  they  possess  and  use  all  the 
prefixes  except  the  1 fih.  In  Kongo  the  1st  and  3rd  prefixes 
are  usually  shortened  to  M-  or  IV- , but  in  almost  all  other 
members  of  the  South-Central  African  group,  and  in  all  the 
western  and  southern  languages  of  East  Africa,  the  vowel  of 
these  prefixes  is  retained.  In  Lunda,  Kioko,  Ovimbundu,  and 

German  exponent  of  the  Bantu  languages]  also  identified  independently  this  17th 
prefix,  but  ascribed  to  it  the  original  form  of  Pi-.  The  present  writer  is  disposed  to 
differ  from  him,  and  to  argue  that  the  original  form  was  more  likely  to  have  been  Si- 
or  Ft-.  In  Fernando  Po  the  17th  prefix  is  Si-,  and  it  takes  that  form  in  the  Manyan 
of  the  eastern  Cross  River,  and  Si-  in  certain  languages  of  the  region  between  the 
upper  Cross  River  and  the  eastern  Benue.  It  is  Si-  in  the  Lokele  and  Losoko  lan- 
guages (north-eastern  bend  of  the  Congo).  In  Manyema  it  is  Fi-,  in  modern  Kongo 
and  Kakongo  it  is  likewise  Fi-.  In  the  Cameroons  and  Gaboon  languages  it  is  either 
Vi-  or  /-,  and  this  last  is  the  abbreviated  form  that  it  assumes  in  the  various  dialects 
of  Lolo  speech,  in  the  Teke  language,  and  in  other  forms  of  speech  in  the  north 
and  central  part  of  the  Congo  basin.  The  corresponding  plural  prefix  is  almost 
invariably  the  12th  of  Bleek’s  system,  namely,  Tu-  (in  the  form  of  Tu -,  To-,  Tso -, 
Lo -,  Ld-,  Ro-).  In  Kakongo , however,  it  takes  Bi-  (the  8th)  as  a plural.  In 
the  semi-Bantu  languages  between  the  Cross  River  and  the  Cameroons  the 
corresponding  plural  is  in  the  form  Ke-,  a type  unknown  to  the  true  Bantu  languages, 
or  else  Me-. 

Recurring  to  Meinhof’s  argument  that  this  prefix  was  originally  Pi-  or  Pyi -,  it 
might  be  said  that  no  trace  of  it  in  that  form  has  yet  been  recorded.  Fi-  is  more 
likely  to  have  been  its  ancient  type.  F is  a consonant  which  in  the  Bantu  languages 
rarely,  if  ever,  becomes  P.  On  the  other  hand,  it  readily  permutes  with  S,  by  way  of 
H.  [The  17th  prefix  is  Hi-  or  He-  in  one  or  two  semi-Bantu  dialects.]  A great  many 
instances  could  be  quoted  of  original  Bantu  f’s  or  Ps  becoming  s in  languages  like 
Zulu,  Herero,  or  Fernandian,  or  vice  versa  of  an  s followed  by  a w changing  to  f 
(sweswe=“  we”  becomes  in  several  dialects  fefe). 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  859 

the  Nano  dialects  (Benguela),  Kimbundu  (Angola),  and  Kishi- 
Kongo  the  2nd  prefix  fades  to  A-  (or  Wa -),  but  resumes  its 
older  form  of  Ba-  in  Kakongo.  In  Herero  it  is  Va - ( Ova ),  and 
also  in  southern  Luba  and  some  of  the  dialects  about  the  Kasai 
sources.  The  8th  prefix,  Bi-,  frequently  becomes  Vi-  in  south- 
eastern and  southern  Congoland,  and  in  the  west  shares 
the  fate  of  the  2nd  by  losing  its  initial  labial  altogether.  In 
Kimbundu  and  other  Angola  districts,  in  Kishi-Kongo , and  in 
Lunda  it  becomes  Yi-  or  /-,  and  in  the  middle  of  the  Zambezi- 
Congo  watershed  displays  the  tendency  so  marked  in  the  Zulu 
and  Nyanja  languages  to  pass  through  Byi-  or  Bzi,  to  Zi  or  Si. 
The  10th  prefix  (Zi,  Zin)  is  almost  dropped  in  the  Second 
Invasion  languages  of  east  and  south-east  Congoland  and  in 
Luba  (though  always  represented  by  its  concord  particle  and 
pronoun),  but  flourishes  in  the  regions  west  of  the  middle  Kasai 
in  slightly  varying  forms  (Zin-,  Zin-,  Zon , Thon-,  Sin-).  The 
14th  prefix,  Bu-,  loses  its  labial  (like  Ba-  and  Bi-)  in  the  west 
and  becomes  U-  in  the  Lunda,  Kongo,  Angola,  Benguela,  and 
Herero  languages.  This  dislike  to  the  initial  b in  the  south- 
west  is  curiously  paralleled  in  the  eastern  coast-lands  of  Bantu 
Africa. 

The  1 6th  prefix,  Pa-,  reaches  its  extreme  development  of 
use  in  the  languages  of  south-west  Tanganyika  and  the 
Nyasa- Tanganyika  plateau.  Its  vogue  lessens  somewhat  as 
one  proceeds  westward.  Still  it  scarcely  fails  in  any  of  the 
languages  *of  the  Second  Invasion,  and  always  retains  its 
concord  particle,  which  is  completely  lost  in  those  of  the  First 
Invasion. 

In  the  Urututsi , a Hima  type  of  language  to  the  north  of 
Tanganyika,  the  16th  prefix  takes  the  form  of  Va-,  but  in  all 
the  other  languages  of  the  Third  Invasion  anywhere  near  the 
Congo  basin  (except  Luganda,  which  adopts  the  less  modified 
form  of  Wa-),  the  locative  prefix  in  the  form  of  Ha-.  This 
type  extends  right  down  the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika  till  the 
Bemba  language  is  reached  on  the  south-west  corner,  and  here 
the  1 6th  prefix  is  restored  to  its  original  form — Pa-.  The  Ha- 
disease  (as  I have  been  sometimes  impelled  to  call  it)  is  a very 
curious  one  : I mean  the  abrupt  change  of  the  labial  p to  the 
aspirate  h.  It  is  a marked  feature  of  the  eastern  Equatorial 
Bantu  languages,  and  reappears  also  in  the  middle  languages 
of  the  Second  Invasion  (Luba  and  its  allies),1  and  also  amongst 

1 Except  southern  Luba  of  Katanga.  Here  the  locative  particle  is  Po- 
or Pa-. 


86 o GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


some  forms  of  speech  of  the  First  Invasion  along  the  north- 
eastern Congo. 

In  Kongo  and  Angola  the  16th  prefix  or  locative  particle 
is  Va-.  In  the  Herero  group  of  languages  it  more  often 
retains  the  initial  consonant  E,  but  the  vowel  sound  (through 
the  prefix  being  given  a relative  sense)  is  often  changed 
to  o. 

The  languages  of  the  Second  and  Third  Invasions  differ 

o 


notably  from  those  of  the  First  in  their  far  more  frequent  use 
of  the  definite  particle  before  the  prefix.  This  practice,  it  is 
true,  has  died  out  in  the  Luba  dialects,  in  Lunda  and  some  of 
the  upper  Kasai  and  Kwango  languages,  but  it  still  survives  in 
Kongo,  in  Kimbundu  (Angola),  and  notably  in  the  Herero 
group,  and  the  Tonga-Ila-Bisa  type  of  Bantu  along  the 
Zambezi-Congo  water-parting.  The  particle  A-,  /-,  U-  (accord- 
ing to  the  vowel  of  the  prefix)  is  still  in  effective  use  in  the 
languages  of  the  south-west  coast  of  Tanganyika  and  on 
the  Nyasa-Tanganyika  plateau.  It  is  more  prominent  in  the 
Kongo  speech  of  the  seventeenth  century  than  in  that  of 
the  present  day  (wherein  it  is  reduced  to  O-  and  E-),  and  has 
disappeared  altogether  from  the  Kakongo  north  of  the  Congo 
estuary. 

It  attains  a very  peculiar  development  in  the  Bantu  of 
South-West  Africa,  notably  in  the  language  of  the  Herero. 
In  this,  as  in  related  dialects  of  the  north  (Benguela  province), 
even  in  the  languages  of  Angola,  this  definite  particle,  instead 
of  being  in  harmony  with  the  vowel  of  the  prefix  as  in  the 
other  Bantu  groups  (A,  /,  U , or  A,  E,  O ),  is  reduced  almost 
entirely  to  the  single  form  O.  Thus,  instead  of  Aba  we  have 
Ova;  instead  of  Ibi,  Ovi ; in  place  of  Izin,  Ozon  or  Othon . 
But  this  corruption  does  not  extend  to  the  particle  of  the 
6th  prefix  ( E- ),  which,  on  the  other  hand,  is  fused  with  the 
prefix  ( Edi ),  and  becomes  Ei  or  E . 


In  order  to  assist  these  theories  of  classification  and  to  indi- 
cate the  interrelationships  of  the  various  Congo  and  Cameroons 
languages,  it  may  be  of  interest  to  give  a selection  of  the 
numerals  from  all  the  principal  types  of  Bantu  speech  in  this 
region  We  will  commence  our  survey  with  the  languages 
of  the  First  Invasion  and  with  Kuamba  their  north-easternmost 
example,  which  is  mainly  spoken  within  the  Albertine  Nile 
Valley,  on  the  northern  slopes  of  Ruwenzori,  but  also  on  the 
adjoining  frontiers  of  the  Congo  State.1 


1 Kuamba  is  fairly  well  illustrated  in  my  book  on  the  Uganda  Protectorate. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  86 1 


KUAMBA  (north  and  west  Ruwenzori). 

(The  speech  of  the  Baamba  people  of  the  north  and  west  slopes  of 

Ruwenzori.) 

1.  moti 

2.  bare 

3.  saru 

4.  ine 

5.  tanu 

6.  mkaga  (borrowed  from  Uganda-Unyoro  speech) 

7.  nsambu 

8.  nane 

9.  subi  (peculiar  to  Kuamba  and  Lubira ) 

10.  kumi 

11.  kumi  na  susimoti 

12.  kumi  na  murubare 

20.  bwesi  muti  (note  independent  word  for  * twenty  ’) 

40.  bwe’bare 
100.  bwe’tano 


LIHUKU. 


(North-west  of  the  lower  Semliki,  Mboga  country.) 


1.  ingana 

2.  diwiri 

3.  diletu 

4.  gena 

5.  boko  (cf.  word  for  15  in 

Ngoinbe) 

6.  madia  (cf.  Mundu) 

7.  madaneka 

8.  bagina  (cf.  Mundu ) 

9.  bagina  ngono 

10.  mine  (cf.  Mundu  for  9,  and 
Mbuba  for  10,  also  Bambute ; 
also  Ababua  and  Isubii 


11.  baitoda 

12.  bakumba 

13- 

14- 
G- 


(cf.  Nyamnyam ) 


digi-diletu 
digi-gina 
digi-boko 


(And  so  on,  combining  digi 
with  the  numerals  for  6,  7, 
8,  and  9.) 

20.  bamene  bawiri  (cf.  mine  for 
‘ ten  ’) 

30.  bamene  baratu 
40.  bamene  gina 
100.  radi 


BAMBUTTU. 


(?  Pygmies  of  the  Ituri-Aruwimi  near  Bomili  and  Nepoko.) 


1.  munga 

2.  bape,  bapeni 

3.  batu 

4.  bagena,  bageni 

5.  boko 


6.  madianika 

7.  mananika 

8.  amadyina 

9-  ? 

10.  boko-boko 


862  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


KIBIRA. 

(Upper  Ituri  forests  and  thence  southwards  to  the  Lindi  River.) 


1.  kadi 

2.  ebare 

3.  esaru 

4.  sina 

5.  etanu 

6.  mutuba  (cf.  northern  Congo  and 

Cameroons  dialects) 


7.  sambu 

8.  munane 

9.  ? 

10.  moko  (cf.  word  for  ‘five’  in 
Lihuku  and  ‘ ten  * in  Bakio- 
kwa) 


BAKIOKWA  or  BAKWA. 


(Stanley’s  “ Bakumu,”  also  said  to  be  spoken  by  some  of  the  Bambute 
Pygmies,  Ehuru  or  Epulu  River,  north-western  Ituri.) 


1.  kadi 

2.  ibari 

3.  saro 

4.  zinna 

5.  itano 

6.  mutuba  (cf.  supra ) 

7.  kitanai 


8.  kibbe 

9.  elalo  (cf.  word  for  ‘ eight  ’ and 

‘ seven  ’ in  Lubira) 

10.  mukko  (cf.  the  ’ntuko,  mituku 
of  the  Congo  languages) 

20.  mukko  ibali 

BAKUMU.1 


(Cf.  Chopo  River,  south  of  Lindi  River,  N.E.  Congo.) 


1.  -muti 

2.  -be 

3.  -sau 

4.  -gena 

5.  -mambunja 


LUBIRA. 


f) 

£>’  [no  record 
9 J 

10.  boku 


(Lubusese  forest  and  grassland  regions,  upper  Ituri  sources,  west  of 
Lake  Albert  Nyanza,  in  the  middle  of  the  Lendu  country.) 

1.  buigiri  or  ngilini 

2.  -bala  or  -bali 

3.  -sato  or  -saro 

4.  ine  or  aini 

5.  -tano 

6.  madya  (cf.  Mundu)  or  kiboko-bari  [cf.  -boko  for  * five  ’ in 

Lihuku.  Kiboko-bari  may  mean  ‘ the  second  five  ’ 2] 

7.  lalodu  (cf.  Mbuba  and  Lendu ) 

8.  lalo  (cf.  Mbuba ) 

9.  sobya  (cf.  Kuamba) 

10.  ikumi 

20.  kumi  bali 
100.  igama 

1 Most  of  the  Bakumu  forest  tribes  speak  corrupt  Bantu  dialects,  but  the  western- 
most Bakumu,  according  to  Stapleton,  use  the  non-Bantu  Bamanga  language. 
flPJBL2  In  these  dialects  grouped  under  the  general  title  of  Lubira  the  word  for  finger 
would  appear  to  be  kiboko. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  863 


BABALI. 


(Between  River  Lindi  and  middle  Aruwimi.) 


1.  -moti 

2.  -bali 

3.  -sialo 

4.  -zina 

5.  -buku 

6.  madia-amoti 

7.  madi-ambali 


8.  madi-ansalu 

9.  madi-azina 

10.  bapi-bali ; edingu  limoti  (cf. 

digi  of  Lihuku ) 

20.  amodingu  mabali 
50.  amodingu  boku 


[The  word  for  6 or  numerals  following  on  5 — madia — is  peculiar 
and  interesting.  It  appears  in  the  non-Bantu  Mundu  language,  and  in 
the  Bantu  dialects  Lihuku,  Bambutu,  Lubira,  and  Babati  {add).  The 
words  for  10  consist  first  of  some  variant  root  for  ‘ five’  {-pi)  duplicated, 
and  secondly  of  a very  interesting  form,  edingu  plural  amodingu.  This 
may  be  connected  in  origin  with  the  digi  of  Lihuku  and  even  the 
tuku , -rongo  of  Central  Congoland  or  of  eastern  and  south-western 
Bantu  ] 


BALESE. 

(Stanley’s  Pygmy  language  of  Mbarukukaru,  of  the  upper  Ituri,  west 
of  Lubira : an  outlying  member  of  the  Ababua  group.) 


1.  ujju  (peculiar) 

2.  ibari 

3.  ikaro 

4.  ikwanganya  (cf.  Ikwa  of  Bali , 

N.E.  Cameroons) 

5.  bumuti  ( = five-one.  Cf.  Ababua 

and  Babati) 

6.  ijju  (peculiar) 


7.  bumuti  na  ibali 

8.  bumuti  na  iharo 

9.  bumuti  na  ikwanganya 

10.  mabo  (cf.  Losoko  and  Likan - 
gana  ; also  Babati  and  Abo- 
bwa) 

20.  mabo  ibari 


ABABUA. 

(Region  between  the  Wele  River  on  the  north  and  the  Aruwimi  basin 

on  the  south.) 


1.  nkai  (cf.  Lihuku ) or  muti 

2.  mibali 

3.  bisalu 

4.  bikwangani  (cf.  Balese) 

(-ne  in  composition).  Cf. 
Lihuku , Mundu , etc. 

5.  bumuti 

(-tano  in  composition) 

6.  mutuba 

7.  sambo 

8.  moambi  [a  widespread  root  for 

eight  in  N.W.  Bantu] 


9.  ivvoa  or  libwa  (cf.  Cameroons, 
W.and  S.W.Congolanguages) 

10.  jumi 

1 1.  jumi  na  muti 

12.  jumi  na  mibali 

20.  mituku  mibali  (cf.  word  for 
‘ tens  ’ in  Lolo-Lunkundu) 

30.  mituku  misalu 
40.  ,,  mine 

50.  „ mitano 

100.  kama 


864  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


BABATI. 


(Westernmost  Ababua,  around  sources  of  upper  Ebola  and  Likati 

rivers.) 


1.  moti 

2.  mibale 

3.  misalu 

4.  ekwengena 

5.  ebu-moti  ( = five-one) 


6.  adanso  moti 

7.  adanso  bali 

8.  „ salu 

9.  „ ekwengena 

10.  mabo 


r The  particle 
ada  in  adanso 
may  be  con- 
nected with 
the  madia  of 
^ Lihuku , etc. 


20.  mabo  ibali 


ABOBWA. 


(North  of  middle  Aruwimi.) 


1.  -moti 

2.  mi-bale 

3.  mi-salu 

4.  -kwanga 

5.  bumoti 

6.  ada-nsi-moti  (cf.  Babati ) 

7.  ada-misi-mibale 


8.  ad.i-misi-misalu 

9.  ada-misi-mikwanga 

10.  mabo  or  abeti  (mabo  = hands) 
20.  mutu  (man)  asi  moti  (?  = one 
man  finished?) 

50.  batu  basi  bumoti 
100.  batu  basi  mabo 


[Ada  -nsi  in  six  and  succeeding  numerals  may  be  related  to  the 
madi , madia  given  above.  If  mutu  asi  moti  for  20  is  to  be  translated,  as 
its  transcriber,  Mr.  G.  B.  Michell  premises,  ‘man  finishes  one’  (i.e.  ‘one 
man  finished  ’ — with  fingers  and  toes),  then  it  is  difficult  to  account  for 
the  etymology  of  50 — batu  basi  bumoti — since  five  finished  men  would 
equal  100.  But  in  some  of  these  languages  the  toes  are  not  always 
counted,  and  sometimes  a ‘ man  * with  his  two  hands  stands  for  ‘ ten.’] 


KELE  or  LOKELE. 

(Region  between  southern  basin  of  Aruwimi,  north-east  bend  of  Congo 

and  lower  Lomami.) 


1.  omwito 

2.  -bale 

3.  -sato 

4.  -nei 

5.  bo-omwi  ( = five-one) 

6.  liambi  (cf.  word-root  for  ‘ eight  ’ 

in  Ababua , northern  Congo, 
and  Cameroons) 

7.  bosambali  (cf.  western  Congo 

words) 


8.  bonanei 

9.  libwa 

10.  kiu 

20.  litinda  [cf.  northern  Congo, 
semi -Bantu,  and  Fernandian 
languages] 

(‘  twenties  * = matinda) 

40.  matinda  manei 


SOKO  or  LOSOKO. 


(Spoken  by  the  Basoko  along  the  lower  Aruwimi  and  adjacent  Congo.) 

1.  -omoi 

2.  -hele 

3.  saso 

4.  mekeleka  (peculiar  to  Soko  and  Likangana) 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  865 


5.  homo  [probably  for  bomo.  Vide  bumuti  in  Ababua,  etc.] 

6. 

7- 


mbalamoi 

mbaitohele 


[These  are  forms  peculiar  to  Soko.  They  may  reveal 
an  old  root-word  for  ‘ five’  (plus  = one,  two)  akin  to  the 
Nyamnyam  ba] 

[These  phrases  evidently  mean  ‘ to  take  away 
one — or  two — from  ten  ’] 
labo  [cf.  Likangana , Balese , Babati\ 
bokolohomoi  [cf.  word  for  ‘ five  ’ — boko — in  Lihuku\ 

20.  fefe  [peculiar:  unless  it  be  the  relic  of  ‘[fives]  four’ — 4 in  Ndonga 
Ififi]  (‘twenties’  in  Soko  = bafefe) 


8.  olimbonga-hwele 

9.  olimbonga-omoi 
10. 

IS- 


LOKUSU  or  LOFOMA. 


(Dialect  spoken  at  Yakusu,  Stanley  Falls.) 


1.  -mo 

2.  -api 

3.  -satu 

4.  -ne 

5.  -tano 


6.  liambi  (cf.  Kele  supra) 

7.  bosamberi  ( „ „ ) 

8.  onanei 

9.  libua 

10.  diumu 


BAMBOLI. 


(Between  lower  Lomami  and  Lualaba-Congo  at  Stanley  Falls.) 


1.  mitu  ; -emu 

2.  -ambali ; -ede 

3.  -sasu,  -saso 

4.  anci ; -nai 

5.  ohomoi  (cf.  Soko ) 

6.  osambali  (?)  ; liame 

7.  osamede  (?) 


osambali  and  its  variant  osamede  may  be  the 
word  for  7,  and  liame  the  right  word  for  6. 
Cf.  Lokusu  and  Kele 


8.  onanei 

9.  limbwa  or  luwwa 

10.  okama  (cf.  Genya , Fanwe , and  root- word  for  100  in  western  Bantu) 
20.  okama  imbale 
50.  okama  ohomoi 


GENYA. 


(Spoken  by  the  Bagenya  from  Stanley  Falls  southwards  along  the 

Lualaba.) 


1.  -mo 

2.  -be 

3.  -sato 

4.  -na 

5.  -tano 

6.  motoba  (cf.  Kibira , etc.) 

7.  mocomwendi  (peculiar) 

8.  cenana 


9.  abwa 

10.  kumi  [in  multiples,  kama1] 

20.  kama  ibe,  or  bolumbu  (this  last 
peculiar) 

100.  kama  ikumi,  or  ekoi  emo 

(Plural  of  ‘ hundreds’  = 
makoi : 1000  = makoi  kumi) 


1 Note  this  peculiar  variant  kama , for  ‘ten.’  It  may  be  related  to  the  widespread 
-kama,  -kana  used  for  ‘hundred.’  Cf.  Bamanga,  p.  846  ; and  Fanwe,  p.  869. 

II, — 2 V 


866  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


MANYEMA  and  BAKUSU. 


(Spoken  between  the  Lomami,  Lualaba,  and  watershed  of  Tan- 
ganyika, bounded  on  the  south  by  the  River  Luama  and  about  the 
4°  30'  parallel  of  S.  Lat.  Although  Manyema  and  the  allied 
Bakusii  or  Bankusu  and  Batetela  lie  so  far  to  the  south,  they 
belong  in  their  affinities  rather  to  the  First  Invasion  than  any 
other  group.  The  relationship  in  the  numerals  is  marked.) 


1.  -mo,  -solo 

2.  -epe,  -fi,  -endi 

3.  -satu 

4.  -enem 

5.  -tanu 

6.  samaro  (cf.  Kikuba ) 

7.  sambele  ( „ „ ) 

8.  enanem 

9.  diowa  or  divwa  (cf.  the  dibua, 

libuka , etc.,  of  N.  and  W. 
Congoland  and  Cameroons) 


10.  vum 

20.  gumu  ape  or  urn  bafi  or  mafi 
30.  om  or  gumu  asatu  (cf.  the  form 
oma  for  ‘tens’  in  Basongo- 
meno) 

40.  omu  anei 
50.  omu  atanu 
100.  lukama 


LIKANGANA. 


(North  bank  of  Congo,  west  of  Bumba.) 


1.  moi 

2.  iyele 

3.  isaso 

4.  mekeleka  (cf.  Soko) 

5.  homo  (cf.  Soko ) 

6.  isamano 


7.  sambo 

8.  monanei 

9.  libwa 

10.  naabo 

20.  lintinda  (cf.  Lokele,  etc.) 

(‘  twenties  ’ = atinda) 
40.  atinda  haile 


NGOMBE  and  LIFOTO.1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 1 

(Spoken  along  south  bank  of  northern  Congo  southwards  to  the  Lopori 
and  even  Lulongo  and  Busira  rivers,  and  westwards  across  the 
Congo  to  the  vicinity  of  the  Mubangi.) 


1.  -oko,  mboko,  emoi,  moti,  or  moci 

2.  bai,  -bale,  or  -wali 

3.  -sato 

4.  -nei  or  -nne 

5.  -tanu 

6.  isamano 

7.  isambu  or  isamo 

8.  muambi  or  bomwambi  or 

munanai 

9.  libwa 


10.  domi  or  jumi 

(In  Ngombe  10  is  sometimes 
liko,  and  ‘ tens  ’ are  mako.  Cf. 
Kibira , Bakiokwa) 

1 5.  bokolomoi  (cf.  Soko ) 

20.  li-tinda  or  li-cinda  (cf.  Lokele , 
Fernandian , etc.) 

(‘  Twenties  ’ = ma-tinda, 
ma-cinda) 

100.  (In  Lifoto  is  sometimes  lon- 
tuko ; a borrowed  word  is 
used  in  Ngombe.  Cf.  root  for 
‘ ten  ’ in  Lolo  and  Ababua) 


1 For  the  purposes  of  their  numerals,  though  there  is  a distinction  between  them 
otherwise,  Ngombe  might  be  grouped  with  Lifoto , the  language  of  the  Bapoto  of  the 
northern  Congo. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  867 


BWELA-ABUJA. 

(The  interior  of  northern  Congo,  behind  Ngombe  and  Bopoto.) 


1.  emoci 

2.  iba,  -wa 

3.  ihato 

4.  nei 

5.  itano 

6.  hamano 

7.  hambo 


8.  monana 

9.  ibwa 

10.  domi  or  liomi 
20.  ekata  or  mohei 

(‘  twenties  ’ = ikata  or  mihei) 
40.  ikata  iba,  or  mihei  miwa 


NGALA. 


(Mangala,  Bangala,  spoken  along  either  bank  of  the  north-west  Congo.) 


1.  awi 

2.  -bale 

3.  -satu 

4.  -nei 

5.  -tanu 

6.  motoba 

7.  nsambu 


8. 

9* 

10. 


40. 

100. 


muambi 

libwa 

jumu  or  jumi ; also  mokangu, 
PI.  mikangu  (cf.  Kikuba  and 
Isubu) 

mikangu  minei 
monkama 


LOLO  or  LUNKUNDU  or  LUMONGO. 


(This  language,  somewhat  vaguely  called  Lolo  or  Lulolo,  is  spoken  by 
the  Bankundu,  Bamongo,  and  allied  peoples  from  the  Lomami  on 
the  east  right  across  the  Congo  basin  to  the  western  Congo  and 
Lake  Ntomba.) 


1.  -omo  or  -monkole 

2.  -pe  or  -fe 

3.  -satu 

4.  -nei  or  -ne 

5.  -tanu 

6.  botowa  or  -towa 

7.  ntsambo 


9- 

10. 


20. 

100. 


mowambi  or  bonane 
ibwa  or  iboi 
jumo  or  jumi  or  lotuku 
(‘  tens  ’ = ntuku)  (cf.  Ababua , 
etc.) 

ntuku  ipe 
bonkama 


LO-BOBANGI,  LU-YANZI. 

(The  language  of  the  Babangi  or  Bayanzi,  spoken  in  patches  along  the 
south  bank  of  the  north-western  Congo,  at  the  estuaries  of  the 
Lulongo,  Busira,  and  Mubangi,  and  eastwards  and  southwards 
as  far  as  Lake  Leopold  II,  and  perhaps  along  the  lower  Kasai.) 


1.  -oko 

2.  -bali 

3.  -sato 

4.  -nne,  -nei,  -nezi 

5.  -tano 

6.  motuba 

7.  ntsambo 

8.  muambi 

9.  libwa 


10.  zumo  or  zumu 

(‘tens’  = momu;  also  makwa, 
PI.  of  nkwa) 

20.  makwa’bali 

30.  bweli  (peculiar : cf.  the  ‘ bwe  ’ 
in  ‘bwesi,’  the  Kuamba  word 
for  ‘ twenty.’  ‘ Thirties  ’ in 
Bangi  are  rendered  by 
-meli) 


868  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


40.  yu-minei  or  nyum’minezi  80.  luasi  (peculiar  and  unex- 

50.  nyu’mitano  plained,  but  again  cf.  -si  in 

60.  nyu’motuba  Kuamba  ‘ bwesi  ) 

70.  nyu’tsambo  (Plural,  counting  in  ‘ eighties/ 

ndwasi) 

90.  mubwa 
100.  munkama 


KIKUBA. 

(Of  Lusambo,  northern  Sankuru  River.) 


1.  moko 

2.  -api 

3.  -satu 

4.  nei- 
. -tano 
. basamalu 

7.  sambwali 

8.  nana 

9.  dibwa 

10.  diu  singele  (thislast  is  peculiar 

and  unexplained.  Basengi’ 
appears  to  be  the  plural : cf. 
the  form  isangi  in  Basongo- 
meno,  isaka  of  Isubn , and 
-kangu  in  Ngala) 


1 1.  singele  kimoko  [vide  20.  The 

root  of  this  variant  for  “ten” 
is  evidently  sengi] 

12.  singele  ipi 
20.  basengi-bapi 
30.  basengi-basatu 

60.  „ -basambanu 

70.  „ -sambwali 

100.  kama  kimoko 


BASONGO-MENO. 


(Region  between  northern  Sankuru  and  Lukenye.) 


1.  omo 

2.  -ape,  -b’pe 

3.  -satu 

4.  -nei 

5.  -itanu 

6.  bisamalu 

7.  sambwali 

8.  inana 

9.  liboa 


10.  jumi  or  isangi  (cf.  Isubu , etc.) 

11.  isangi-lomo 

20.  oma-b’pe  [peculiar  form,  per- 
haps corruption  of  mdom 
(makumi)  ’ape\ 

30.  tojangi-misatu  (-isangi  with 
the  diminutive  plural  prefix 

to) 

100.  kama 


BOMA  or  BUMA  (or  KIBUMA). 

(Spoken  by  the  Baboma  or  Babuma  along  the  lower  Kasai  and  Lukenye 
and  in  the  eastern  verge  of  the  Bateke  country.) 


1.  mui  or  more 

2.  -pe  or  -pi 

3.  -sera  or  -saru  (cf.  tiru  of  Teke) 

4.  -nni 

5.  -tano 

6.  -siamo,  -semun,  or  samo 


7.  kisale  or  kisane  (a  contraction 

of  ki-sambu-bali) 

8.  inana  or  kenana 

9.  iva  or  levva 

10.  jium  or  jomo 

11.  jumi  mori,  or  jium  mui 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  869 


20.  muare  or  mopi 
30.  musaru  or  mosera 
40.  morn' 

50.  mutano 

60.  musamen’  or  musiamo 


70.  tokisaali  or  tokesane  {vide 
method  of  forming  30  in 
Basongomeno , and  70,  80, 
etc.,  in  Kongo') 

80.  majimkenan  (a  contraction  of 
majium,  majumi,  etc.) 

90.  majimlevva 
100.  nkama 


TEKE  or  ITEO. 

(The  language  of  the  Bateke  or  Batio,  Atio  or  Bateo,  whose  habitat 
stretches  between  the  western  Congo  and  Stanley  Pool  and  the 
lower  Kwango  River  to  the  basin  of  the  Ogowe,  and  on  the  north 
almost  to  the  domain  of  the  Fan.') 


1.  umo 

2.  -oli,  -yoli,  or  muoli  (cf.  Kongo ) 

3.  -tiru  (a  peculiar  variant  of  the 

root  -tatu  via  taro , tyaru ) 

4.  -nna 

5.  -tanu 

6.  sieno 

D 

7.  ntsana  or  nsambu 

8.  mpuomo  (cf.  Aduma ) 

9.  bwa 


10.  kfumi,  or  nkwa  (cf.  for  nkwa, 
akwa , Lo-bobangi).  In  Teke, 
‘ tens  ’ = akwa  or  akum. 

20.  akum’uoli  (cf.  abbreviation  in 
Kongo) 

30.  akwa-itiru 
40.  akwa-na 
50.  akwa-tanu 

80.  likumpomo  (cf.  Kongo , Bit- 
map etc.) 

100. 


FANWE  Dialects  and  NJIEM. 

(The  language  of  the  far-reaching  tribes  grouped  under  the  names  of 
Fan,  Fanwe,  or  Panwe,  Ntum,  Make,  Bulu,  Yaunde,  etc.  The  Njiem- 
Mabea  group  is  somewhat  distinct  ( v . p.  891).  Its  numerals  are  placed 
last  in  the  series.  These  languages  range  between  the  vicinity  of  the 
Atlantic  coast  of  the  Gaboon  and  the  upper  Sanga  River  on  the  east.) 


1.  ndze,  ivora,  fok,  ngwar 

2.  bei,  mba 

3.  -lal,  laa,  le 

4.  -nee,  nyin,  na 

5.  tarn,  tan,  ten 

6.  same,  samen,  tobo,  ntoa 

7.  sangual,  hembwedi 

8.  engwam,  ngwom,  lombi 


9.  ebul,  ebua 

10.  awom,  womi,  bom ; kam  (cf. 
for  kam,  Bagenya , Bamboli , 
etc.) 

20.  mewom, mebe, etc.;  or mekam 
meba 

100.  nkama,  ntet,  bwea  (cf.  Bube ) 


ADUMA. 


(The  principal  language  of  the  Ogowe.) 


1.  -mo 

2.  yole  (cf.  Kongo ) 

3.  -tato 

4.  -na 

5.  -tano 

6.  masamunu 


7.  cambo  or  tsambo 

8.  pombo 

9.  liboa 

10.  likumi 

20.  makumi-mole 
100.  mukuma 


870  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


MPONGWE. 


(The  language  of  the  Gaboon  coast) 


7.  orogenu  or  rogenu  (peculiar) 

8.  nanai 


9.  inogomi 
10.  igomi 
20.  agomi  mbani 
100.  mkama 


1.  mori  (cf.  ivora  in  Fan) 

2.  -mbani  or  -vani 

3.  -tiaro  or  -taro 

4.  -nai 

5.  -tiani  or  -tani 

6.  orowa  or  rowa  (the  -toba,  inu- 

toba  of  the  Cameroons  and 
northern  Congo) 

The  BAKELE  language,  possibly  known  as  Dikele,  of  the  people 
formerly  inhabiting  the  Gaboon  interior  east  of  Mpongwe,  has  only 
these  points  remarkable  about  its  numerals:  i=yuvoto;  io  = diom; 
plural  of  10 : mabom  (?  akin  to  the  inabo  of  north-eastern  Congo : 
probably  not). 

DUALA  or  DIWALA. 


(The  language  of  the  Cameroons  estuary.) 


1.  ewo,  -mo 

(In  the  adjoining  Basa  dialect 
1 is  yata  or  yada) 

2 and  3 and  4 are  of  the  common 
types 

6.  mutoba 

7.  samba 

8.  lombi  (recalls  the  -ambi  of 

the  northern  Congo) 


9.  dibua 

10.  dum’ 

In  multiplication  10  is  mu-1 
20.  mwaba 

30.  mwalalu  [i.e.  makumi-atatu] 
50.  mwatan’ 

100.  egbwea  [cf.  Fernandian  and 
Njiem\ 


In  the  adjoining  Basa  language,  6 is  sama. 

In  Bonken  of  the  Cameroons  hinterland,  6 is  mutoba , and  in 
Abo , on  the  upper  Cameroons  River,  it  is  mitu. 

In  Bonken , 7 is  samba , and  8 is  lombe  or  buambi.  Multiples 
of  10  are  expressed  by  mu-. 

In  Bakundu  of  the  northern  Bantu  Cameroons,  10  is 
luundaru ; 20  is  dil -,2  and  the  ‘ twenties  * are  mu-. 

In  Barundo , a language  of  the  northern  Cameroons  coast 
(Rio  del  Rey),  20  is  diti,  plural  mati  (cf.  Fernandian,  and  the 
litinda  of  Northern  Congo). 

In  Barombi , an  adjoining  language,  30  is  mboko  [cf.  word 
for  15  in  Soko.~\ 

1 This  form  is  characteristic  of  Duala , Basa , Bakundu , and  Bonken , and  partially 
of  Isubu  and  Bakwiri.  It  is  probably  a contraction  of  Mau,  and  this  of  Maku’, 
Makum’,  Makumi  ( = plural  of  Dikumi,  ‘ten’)-  We  may  notice  this  contraction 
beginning  in  Kongo. 

2 The  etymology  of  these  forms  is  as  yet  quite  unexplained.  The  lu  in  lu-undaru 
[for  ‘ten’]  is  no  doubt  the  contraction  of  a longer  form,  and  may  be  pluralised  by  du 
or  do. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  871 
The  numerals  of  Isubu- Bakwiri,  the  language  of  the 


great  Cameroons  Mountain 
sufficiently  interesting  in  their 
detail : — 

1.  -oko  or  iyo 

2.  -ba 

3.  -yau,  and  also  -lalu 

4.  -ni  or  -ne 

5.  -ta’  or  -tanu 

6.  mutoba 

7.  lisamba 

8.  lombi  or  wambi 

9.  libuka1 

10.  isaka,2  also  liumi,  and  (in  mul- 
tiples) mini 


and  its  seaward  slopes,  are 
affinities  to  be  given  in  more 

20.  do’  or  mbangi  (mbangi  is 
peculiar) 

30.  isakalalu  or  sakiyau 
40.  mwani^r  mini-mine(mine  = 4) 
50.  sakitanu  or  matano,  or  mini- 
meta 

60.  mumutoba  or  mini-mutowa 
70.  musamba  or  mini-samba 
80.  mulombi  or  mini-wambi 
90.  mulibuka  or  mini-libuka 
100.  ewoke 


In  the  Barombi  language  to  the  north  of  the  Cameroons 
Mountain,  whilst  6 is  motuwa , 7 is  sambia , and  8 is  described 
as  motua-beke.  In  the  adjoining  Barondo  or  Barundo , 8 is 
njambwe. 

The  numerals  of  the  Fernandian  or  Bube  languages 
are  separately  treated  in  the  account  of  that  language  on 
pages  882-5. 

[For  convenience  of  reference,  two  illustrations  may  be 
given  here  of  the  semi-Bantu  languages  of  the  eastern 
Cameroons  hinterland.  These  may  to  a certain  extent  illus- 
trate the  types  of  the  numerals  in  semi-Bantu  speech  between 
this  region  and  the  sources  of  the  Sanga. 


BALI. 

(N.E.  Cameroons.) 

1.  iin  7.  kwatet  (i.e.  4+  3) 

2.  iba  8.  ifum  (compare  words  for  8 in 

3.  itet  Aduma  and  Batekei) 

4.  ikwa  (cf.  Ababua  groups,  9.  njibo 

p.  863)  10.  gom,  ngom 

5.  itan  20.  ba-ngom 

6.  ntu 

1 This  is  interesting,  as  it  is  possibly  the  oldest  form  of  the  widespread  dibna  or 
libua , which  is  the  word  for  9 over  such  an  enormous  area  of  West-Central  Africa.  It 
is  further  to  be  noted  that  9 in  the  Ila  language  of  the  Zambezi-Congo  watershed  is 
ifuka. 

2 Compare  with  the  - kangu , isangi , -sengi  of  the  Ngala , Basongo , and  Kiknba 
of  the  North  and  Central  Congo;  also  for  mini,  cf.  the  mene,  mine  of  N.E.  Congo- 
land  (. Lihuku , etc.).  This  survival  of  this  alternative  term  for  ‘ten’  in  Isubu , 1,500 
miles  to  the  W.N.W.,  is  very  remarkable.  It  may  account  for  the  Mie  (contraction 
of  mine ) in  Fernandian. 


872  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


INDIKI. 


(The  Penin  of  the  Rev.  S.  Koelle ; near  Mbam  River,  northern 

Cameroons.) 


1.  imoti 

2.  bifande  (the  bi-,  be-  in  these 

numerals  2 to  8 is  only  a 
prefix  : -fande  = fare,  -bale) 

3.  belar 

4.  binis 

5.  belan 

6.  belandar  (compare  tandatu,  tan- 

daru  of  eastern  and  southern 
Bantu) 


7.  berenderunum’  (6  + 1) 

8.  binamane 

9.  ibo 

10.  bihoar,  bohar  (probably  the 
dual  of  bo , old  root  for  5, 
bo-fare , bo-bale  = twice  5) 

15.  buni 

20.  hit;  rina  ; titade  (‘  twenties  ’ = 
merina).  Cf.  Fernandian. 


In  dealing  with  the  numerals  of  the  Congo- Bantu  languages 
belonging  to  the  cohort  which  I have  associated  with  the 
Second  Invasion,  we  might  once  more  commence  our  survey 
from  the  eastern  side  ; but  in  order  to  avoid  a tiresome  repe- 
tition in  mental  journeys  across  Central  Africa,  we  will  consider 
first  the  numerals  of  the  languages  of  the  Third  Invasion 
[ Uganda  - U nyoro  group]  in  so  far  as  they  are  connected  with 
the  study  of  Congo- Bantu.  In  nearly  all  the  members  of  this 
Ugctnda-Unyoro  group,  ‘one  ’ is  mu  or  mwe  ; but  in  Lusoga  and 
the  languages  of  the  north  and  north-east  coasts  of  the  Victoria- 
Nyanza  it  is  generally  -dala  or  - lala , which  means  a finger.  The 
classical  root  for  ‘one,’  however,  reappears  in  that  most  archaic 
form  of  Bantu — the  Lukonde  of  north-west  Mount  Elgon, 
in  which  it  is  gumwe . [In  Olukonjo  of  the  Congo  border  it  is 
gumai]  The  root  for  2 is  - biri  or  wiri,  never  -bari ; 3 is  either 
- satu , - datu , or  -taru  ; 4 is  -nya,  - nai , or  nne  ; 5 is  usually  -tano. 
The  word  for  6 is  peculiar  to  this  group  and  to  some  of  its 
adherents  in  the  south-west  and  south-east — mukaga}  except 
in  one  language,  Lusokwia  of  West  Elgon,  in  which  it  is  sesaba; 

7 is  musanju,  musanzu,  musa?nvu , or  musafu,  except  in  the 
antique  dialect  of  the  Sese  Islands,  in  which  it  is  musamba  ;1 2 3 

8 is  munana  in  most  of  the  dialects,  except  Lukonde  and 
Lusokwia  of  West  Elgon,  in  which  it  is  kinane  or  sinane ;s  9,  in 
all  these  dialects,  is  either  mwenda)  kenda , or  kienda  ; and  10  is 
invariably  ikumi , ekumi , or  likumi ; 20  is  simply  the  plural  form 
of  10 — amakumi.  The  word  for  100  varies  a good  deal,  but 
the  commonest  and  oldest  root  is  - gana , though  in  some  lan- 
guages to  the  north-east  or  east  of  the  Victoria-Nyanza  the 


1 This  form  is  borrowed  by  Kuamba. 

2 This  is  the  West  African  - sambo , - samo , etc. 

3 Cf.  the  Kinane  of  so  many  West  African  Bantu  languages. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  873 

plural  mirongo  turns  up  [merely  meaning  plurals  of  10,  actually 
a hundred.  Cf.  Herero  mirongo  and  many  East  and  South 
African  dialects  and  the  North-East  Congo  mituku?\ 

Olukonjo , of  the  southern  slopes  of  Mount  Ruwenzori,  the 
upper  Semliki  valley,  and  the  highlands  along  the  western 
edge  of  the  Albertine  Rift  valley,  has  peculiar  and  ancient 
features  of  its  own,  but  is  nevertheless  a member  of  the  Uganda 
and  Unyoro  group.  The  root  for  1 is  -guma}  for  2 -here,  and 
for  all  the  other  numerals  it  is  practically  the  same  as  the 
slightly  varying  formations  already  cited  of  the  other  members 
of  this  group.  The  word  for  10  sometimes  assumes  the  very 
full  form  of  erikumi,  and  100  is  erigena. 

Between  the  north  end  of  Lake  Tanganyika  and  Lake  Kivu 
there  are  the  languages  or  dialects  of  the  Ruanda  people  (Awa- 
nya-ruanda)  and  the  Avatutsi  or  Avatusi  (with  whom  may  be 
included  the  Ababa  or  Waha  of  north-east  Tanganyika).  The 
Ruanda  and  Tusi  speech  is  closely  related  to  that  of  the 
Hima,  Toro,  and  Unyoro  folk,  and  the  numerals  agree  in  all 
their  features  with  those  already  cited  in  connection  with  the 
Uganda  languages  ; for  instance,  6 is  Mukaga.  The  Kirundi 
language  (north  and  north  coast-lands  of  Tanganyika),  however, 
while  agreeing  in  most  features  with  this  Uganda- Unyoro 
group,  differs  from  them  somewhat  interestingly  in  its  numerals. 
These  are  : — 


1.  umwe 

2.  -wiri 

3.  -tatu  or  satu 

4.  -nne 

5.  -tano 

6.  -tandatu(Eastand  South  African. 

Cf.  Semi- Bantu  and  Fernandian ) 


7.  indwi  (cf.  Kabwari) 

8.  umunane 

9.  icienda  (cf.  Uganda-Unyoro 

and  all  East  Africa) 

10.  iciumi;  also  umurongo  (‘  tens  ’ 
= imirongo.  Cf.  Herero') 
100.  igana 


The  languages  of  the  Second  Invasion  commence  on  the 
north-east  with  the 

KABWARI-KILEGA. 


(Kabwari  is  spoken  on  the  north-west  corner  of  Lake  Tanganyika,  and 
is  closely  allied  to  Kilega,  the  language  of  the  Balega  farther  west.) 


1.  -mwe 

2.  -biri 

3.  -tatu 

4.  -tano 

6.  mtanda 

7.  ndui  (cf.  Kirundi) 

8.  munana 


9.  kenda  (East  African) 

IO.  kumi,  and  mlongo  (‘ tens’ = 
milongo.  Cf.  Herero  of 
S.W.  Africa,  and  the  ntuku, 
mi-tuku  of  the  western 
Congo) 

100.  zama 


874  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


KIGUHA  and  KITABWA. 

(Languages  of  the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika,  nearly  alike  in  their 
numerals,  but  not  in  all  other  points.) 

1.  -mo  9.  habula  (cf.  the  pabula  of  Ki- 

2.  -wiri,  bili  bemba)  or  fundi-lubali  {Ki- 

6.  ntanda  or  mutanda  (cf.  Kibemba)  tabwa ; same  in  Kibemba) 

7.  kilowa  or  kiloba  (cf.  Chila  of  N.  10.  kumi,  likumi 

Zambezia)  100.  zana,  kinunu 

8.  mwanda 

As  regards  the  word  for  6 — mutanda — this  form  extends  to 
all  the  languages  of  the  Second  Invasion.  It  may  be  connected 
with  the  -tandatu  which  prevails  over  so  much  of  East  and  South 
Africa,  and  which  reappears  again  in  the  far  north-west  amongst 
some  of  the  semi- Bantu  languages,  and  perhaps  in  the  island 
of  Fernando  Po.  7 in  Kirundi  and  Kabwari  is  represented  by 
a peculiar  form — ndui  or  indwi — not  as  yet  traceable  to  other 
groups.  7.  In  Kiguha  and  Kitabwa — lilowa  or  liloba  recalls 
the  - tuba , -rowa,  toba  for  6 in  the  north-west  group,  and  may  be 
an  instance  of  a term  transferred  from  one  “new”  numeral  to 
another — all  the  numerals  after  5 being  “ new  ” to  the  con- 
cepts of  the  savage  mind.  This  same  root  -roba  or  -toba  re- 
appears as  ‘1,000’  in  Ki-bisa.  Some  of  these  languages  of 
the  Second  Invasion — Ki-guha,  Kitabwa,  Ki-emba  or  Ki-bemba 
— employ  a special  word  for  8 — mwanda  ; but  this  in  the  capri- 
cious way  already  mentioned  reappears  in  some  of  the  languages 
of  this  group  (Kibemba  and  Kibisa,  and  the  far-distant  Chila  of 
the  central  Zambezi  frontier)  as  the  term  for  100  in  place  of  the 
familiar  kana,  zana , or  kama.  In  the  Bemba  or  Emba  dialects 
the  words  for  7,  8,  and  91  are  special  compounds,  fully  explained 
in  the  Rev.  W.  G.  Robertson’s  Handbook  of  the  Bemba 
Language . The  habula  (9)  of  Kiguha  reappears  farther  south 
as  pabula , and  really  means  “ Where  there  is  none  remaining 
. . . no  more  fingers  to  be  counted,”  thumbs  being  regarded 
apart  as  quinary  symbols. 

None  of  these  languages  of  the  Second  Invasion,  or  any 
other  groups  of  eastern,  southern,  or  south-western  Bantu 
have  any  special  word  for  20.  Counting  is  emphatically  by 
tens,2 *  even  though  the  10  may  sometimes  be  called  by  a 
“ fancy  ” name  instead  of  the  familiar  kumi. 

In  the  Wisa  or  Bisa  language,  which  with  its  affiliated 

1 7 — cine  lubali , 8 = cinekonsekonse , 9 = fundelubali  or  pabula. 

2 The  Bisa  language,  however,  has  almost  reverted  to  quinary  ideas,  and 

frequently  expresses  ‘ten 5 by  tusa7io  na  tusano  (5  and  5). 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  875 

dialects  occupies  so  much  of  the  south-east  corner  of  the 
Congo  basin,  the  numerals  between  5 and  10  are  simply  com- 
posed of  5 and  1,  2,  3,  and  4.  This  is  also  the  case  with 
the  remaining  languages  of  the  southern  Tanganyika  water- 
shed, several  of  which  use  the  term  murongo  (plural  marongo 
or  mirongo ) as  an  alternative  word  for  10.  This  root  - rongo 
ranges  up  and  down  eastern  Bantu  Africa  from  the  northern 
limits  of  the  Bantu  range  in  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa  down 
to  the  Zambezi  and  beyond  to  the  far  south-west  in  Damara- 
land.  It  is  quite  likely  that  it  may  be  of  the  same  origin  as 
the  -tuku  of  the  northern  Congo.  T constantly  permutes  with 
r,  and  a nasalized  n (ng)  can  easily  become  k ; in  fact,  in  some 
of  the  southern  Bantu  languages  the  root  - rongo  becomes  -logo. 

We  have  now  to  deal  with  a particularly  interesting  section 
of  Congo  Bantu,  which  may  still,  with  attenuated  force,  be 
called  of  the  Second  Invasion.  I refer  to  the  great  Luba 
(Lua-Rua)  group  which  stretches  from  the  west  coast  of  Tan- 
ganyika (south  of  the  River  Lukuga)  right  across  to  the  Kasai 
River;  also  some  distance  northward  down  the  Lomami.  In 
the  Kasai  valley  it  fuses  to  some  extent  with  the  Lunda  con- 
geries, and  with  the  far  more  corrupt  forms  of  Bantu  speech 
which  cover  the  triangle  between  the  Kasai  and  the  Kwango. 
In  the  north  the  Luba  influence  penetrates  almost  to  the  Sankuru 
River,  perhaps  here  and  there  beyond.  Its  most  northern  form 
is  sometimes  known  as  Moiyo  (from  the  familiar  greeting 
Moiyo  !),  and  has  been  well  illustrated  by  the  Rev.  R.  V.  Glennie 
of  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society. 

The  following  are  the  principal  features  (derived  from 
Glennie’s  and  Consul  G.  B.  Michell’s  MS.)  amongst  the  numerals 
in  the  Luba  group,  which  group  in  the  south  extends  to  not 
far  from  the  Zambezi  water-parting. 


1.  -mwe  (N.E.  Luba , mune) 

2.  -bidi 

3.  -satu 

4.  -nai  (N.E.  Luba . nanka) 

5.  -tano 

6.  sambombwe  (asamombo)  (i.e. 

six-one) 

7.  mwandombi  tikiti  (cf.  8 in 

Kiguha,  etc.  Tikiti  means 
‘ little ').  (Musambo  obili 
in  N.E.  Luba) 


8.  mwando  mukulu  (cf.  8 in 

Kiguha,  etc.  Mukulu  means 
‘big’).  (Moanda  in  N.E. 
Luba) 

9.  citema  (a  word  for  ‘ nine1 2 3 4  5 6 7 

peculiar  to  the  Luba  group) 

10.  dia-kumi,  ikumi 

Alternative  word  for  10,  dikwa, 
plural,  makwa.  (Cf.  Lobobangi 
and  also  the  Umbundu  or 
Nano  dialects  of  the  far  west) 
20.  makwa-mabidi,  makumi  abili 
100.  kulakase ; ndukama  (N.E. 
Luba) 


876  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

In  the  more  classical  Luba  of  the  Lulua  River,  the  numerals 
only  differ  from  the  above  in  that  7 is  Muanda  mutekete  or 
muakunyi ; 1 10,  dikumi , and  there  is  apparently  no  alternative 
term  for  ‘ ten,’  ‘ tens/  like  dikwa , makwa.  100  in  Luba  proper 
is  the  classical  Lukama. 

In  the  Southern  Luba,  spoken  in  the  Katanga  country 
(and  recorded  by  Mr.  C.  A.  Swan,  of  the  Plymouth  Brethren 
Mission),  the  following  are  the  differences  : 2 is  vidi ; 6,  7,  8, 
and  9 are  more  often  combinations  of  5,  with  1,  2,  etc.  But 
where  the  older  forms  persist  they  are  : 6 = sambo , 7 = samba - 
vidi , 8 = mwanda , 9 = citana,  100  is  citota . 

The  Lunda  group  farther  to  the  west  differs  from  the  Luba 
in  that  it  preserves  that  more  western  type  of  the  root  for  2. 2 
2 in  Lunda  is  - adi , 6 is  - sambano , 7 - sambuari , 8 = cinana , 
9 = divu,  100  is  citota . In  its  numerals,  therefore,  Lunda  cer- 
tainly belongs  rather  to  the  languages  of  the  First  Invasion 
than  to  those  of  the  Second.  Like  so  many  of  these  tongues 
westward  of  Luba,  it  is  a fusion  and  compromise  between  the 
two  influences. 

Far  to  the  south  of  Lunda,  on  the  Zambezi  side  of  the  water- 
parting,  we  have  the  Ila  or  Chila  language  of  that  wild,  pictur- 
esque and  naked  people  formerly  known  as  the  Mashukulumbwe.3 
The  dialects  of  both  sides  of  the  Zambezi-Congo  frontiers  are 
very  nearly  allied,  and  belong  more  naturally  to  the  South-Central 
Bantu  group  rather  than  to  East  African  Bantu.  In  Ila  we 
have  the  very  interesting  feature,  already  alluded  to,  of  ifuka  for 
9.  Ifuka  is  obviously  (in  common  with  libuka  of  the  far-away 
Isubu,  Cameroons  coast)  the  older  form  of  the  dibua , which  is 
such  a widespread  term  over  nearly  the  whole  of  the  Congo 
basin,  except  Lubaland  and  west  Tanganyika.  Ila  and  the 
dialects  north  of  it  within  the  Congo  boundaries  have  the 
eastern  root  bili  for  2.  6 is  ci-sambomwi , 7 is  ci-loba.  This, 

like  the  kilowa  of  Kiguha  for  the  same  numeral,  would  appear 
to  be  the  North-West  Bantu  root  doba  or  -tuba  for  6,  shifted  to 
7 with  a different  prefix. 

Mr.  E.  W.  Smith,  however,  states  that  in  the  Lumbu , a 
southern  dialect  of  Ila , there  is  (apparently)  an  alternative  term 
for  5,  Kole ; from  which  is  formed  Kakole  (“little”  Kole)  = 6 ; 

1 Mutekete  means  “weaker,”  muakunyi—  “junior.”  Mukulu  in  mwando  mukulu 
(8)  means  “ elder.” 

2 The  Bantu  group  must  have  started  on  its  career  with  two  co-existing  roots  for 
the  numeral  2,  bali  and  bili.  Probably  the  older  of  the  two  is  balij  and  the  root  ba 
signifying  ‘ two  ’ is  found  most  widely  throughout  the  languages  of  the  Equatorial  belt 
of  Africa,  chiefly,  however,  in  the  west. 

3 Vide  the  Handbook  of  the  Ila  Language  published  by  Mr.  E.  W.  Smith. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  877 


Tukole  = 7,  Tukole  totatzve  = 8,  Ttikole  tone  = 9.  In  I la  and 
some  of  the  other  dialects  of  the  southern  limits  of  the  Congo 
basin,  the  word  for  8 is  lusele,  a form  which  extends  eastwards 
and  south-eastwards  to  the  mouth  of  the  Zambezi.  100  is 
Mwanda. 

Although  the  Herero  or  Damara  language  of  South-West 
Africa  comes  nowhere  within  the  basin  of  the  Congo,  it  is 
interesting  to  notice  how  closely  it  agrees  in  some  of  its 
numerals  with  the  languages  of  the  Congo,  though  it  also 
preserves  old  roots  of  East  African  origin.  1 is  mwe , 2 = vari, 
<b  = hambo-umue , 7 = hambo-mbari,  8 = hambo-ndatu , 9 = muviu, 

10  omurongo  (‘ tens’ ^omirongo').  Hambo  is  of  course  the 
same  as  sambo , s'  being  always  changed  into  an  aspirate  in  the 
Herero  group.  Here  we  see  clearly  that  the  sambo , which 
figures  in  so  many  forms  throughout  Congoland  and  right  away 
to  the  eastern  shores  of  the  Victoria  Nyanza,  was  originally  an 
independent  word  adopted  for  6,  instead  of  the  older  3 + 3 
( ntandatu ),  or  5+1.  7 then  became  the  “second  6” — sambo- 

mbali  (which  farther  north  becomes  corrupted  into  sambuadi, 
sambueli , etc.,  and  8 in  Herero  is  the  “third  6” — hambo-ndatu. 
It  has  already  been  shown  that  in  Ila  and  other  languages  6 is 
sometimes  called  sambomwi  or  six-one.  It  may  be  of  course 
that  in  sambo  we  have  simply  a combination  with  that  ancient 
root  for  5,  bo  or  mbo , already  alluded  to. 

In  the  northern  languages  of  the  Herero  group,  such  as 
Umbundu  on  the  south-western  borders  of  the  Congo  basin, 
6 is  represented  by  a peculiar  word,  epandu,  9 is  ecia  or  zera ; 
10  is  ekwi , and  multiples  of  10  are  akwia  (cf.  Luba  word). 

In  the  triangle  of  debased  Bantu,  between  the  Kwango  and 
the  Kasai,  the  different  types  of  numerals  are  fairly  represented 
by  those  of  the  Bahuana , Bambala,  and  Bay  aka.  In  Bahuana 
2 is  bili  and  3 = tutu  (slightly  recalling  the  Teke  = tiru). 

6 is  benin  (inexplicable),  7 = ntsema  (cf.  Luba  word  for  9), 
9 = uwa.  In  Bambala  2 is  mbali,  \=gwana,  6 = sambanu , 

7 ^samboeli,  g = libwoa.  In  Bay  aka  2 is  -vili  or  -ole,  4 = ia  or 
way  a,  6 = siamon  or  - sambanu , 7 = nitseme  or  samboadi , 9 = voa 
(cf.  these  numerals  with  Kongo). 

With  Kongo  and  the  closely  allied  Kakongo , Kiyombe , etc., 
we  may  finish  the  survey  of  these  numerals. 


1.  -mosi  or  mweka 

2.  -ole  ; or  -wadi  (Kakongo) 

3.  -tatu 

4.  -ya  ; or  -na  (Kakongo) 

5.  -tano 


6.  sambanu 

7.  nsambwadi  (in  this  compound 

Kongo  reverts  to  the  older 
form  for  2 — wadi,  bali) 

8.  nana  or  dinana 


878  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


9.  vua  or  divua 

10.  kumi  or  dikumi 

[Multiples  of  10  are  as  in 
Kiyaka  and  Teke,  usually 
in  the  form  of  maku] 


20.  makuambole  or  makumwadi 
But  70,  80,  and  90  are  usually 
represented  by  peculiar 
forms : — 

70.  lusambwadi 
80.  lunana 
90.  luvua 
100.  nkama 


It  is  impossible  in  the  space  at  my  command  to  give  in  this 
present  work  more  than  a summary  of  the  deductions  which 
may  be  made  from  the  linguistic  evidence  collected  mainly  by 
Baptist  missionaries.  But  a few  words  might  be  added  on  the 
subject  of  the  names  applied  to  domestic  animals.  The  dis- 
tribution of  these  terms  throws  some  light  on  the  interrelation- 
ships of  the  different  language  groups  and  on  the  routes 
followed  by  Bantu  migrations  or  other  invasions. 

In  contradistinction  to  the  words  for  “goat”  (which  in  the 
main  continue  faithful  to  the  original  Bantu  root  buzz  or  budi L), 
the  terms  applied  to  sheep  are  legion.  It  would  seem  as 
though  the  sheep — popular  and  widespread  as  it  is  now 
throughout  the  Congo  basin — came  to  the  Bantu  peoples  in 
this  region  at  a later  date  than  the  goat,  and  from  several 
different  directions.  The  goat  they  obviously  possessed  before 
commencing  their  invasion  of  the  southern  half  of  Africa.  In 
one  or  two  of  the  western  Congo  languages  the  name  for  goat, 
mbuzi , is  applied  also  to  a sheep  or  a ram.  In  the  Kongo 
language  the  word  for  sheep  is  i-meme.  The  term  for  goat  in 
the  Babua , Soko , Lubira,  Kibira , and  Kuamba  languages  of  the 
north-east  Congo,  and  the  non- Bantu  speech  of  the  Mundtt, 
Mbuba , Bambute , Manbettu , N donga- Bamanga  is  meme.  This 
word  is  probably  allied  in  origin  to  another  term  for  goat,  be , 
bee,  peeni,  which  also  makes  its  appearance  in  Bantu  and  non- 
Bantu  languages  of  the  Sudan  and  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa. 
In  some  parts  of  the  west-central  basin  of  the  Congo,  the  term 
used  for  goat — nkombo  or  ngombo — appears  to  be  a misapplica- 
tion of  an  old  Bantu  root  for  ox  ( ombe , ombo,  omo).  Amongst 
the  riverain  tribes  of  the  northern  and  western  Congo  the 
name  for  goat  is  ntaba , sometimes  shortened  into  nta ; and 
apparently  the  archaic  name  of  mbudi  or  mbuzi  is  almost  absent 
from  the  greater  part  of  the  Upper  Congo  region,  which  is 
occupied  by  languages  of  the  First  Invasion.  But  the  Lokele , 


1 Bute  may  be  a variant.  This  is  the  term  applied  to  “cow”  by  the  forest  tribe 
Mbuba  and  the  Bambute  Pygmies.  An  ancient  root  ti  {tri,  dri , tsi ) seems  to  have 
existed  in  the  Eastern  Sudan  first  for  “ goat  ” and  then  for  “ cattle.”  This  joined  to 
another  particle,  bu , mbu , gave  a word  for  cow  (first)  and  goat  which  has  spread  far 
over  Bantu  Africa. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  879 

Bagenya , and  some  dialects  of  Ngombe  have  retained  it  ( 'mbuli ), 
and  Grenfell  found  the  people  of  Ilebo,  on  the  western  Equatorial 
Congo,  still  using  mbudi  for  goat  in  1885.  This  is  almost  the 
only  root  recognized  throughout  the  extreme  north-western 
range  of  the  Bantu,  in  the  western  Cameroons  and  Gaboon 
and  Fernando  Po. 

As  regards  the  names  applied  to  ox,  the  form  ente,  ende, 
enka  is  prevalent  among  the  languages  of  the  Third  Invasion. 
On  the  eastern  frontier  of  the  Congo  the  Bangala,  Ngombe,  and 
Babangi-Bayanzi  of  the  northern  and  western  Equatorial  Congo 
use  the  more  widespread  term  ngombo , engombe  ( nombe ).  This 
word-root,  together  with  the  animal  it  represents,  was  undoubtedly 
carried  northwards  from  the  region  of  the  Kasai,  from  the 
territories  of  the  Second  Invasion.  In  the  Kongo  and  in  all 
the  Second  Invasion  languages  ngombe  persists.  Elsewhere  in 
the  centre  and  west,  if  the  ox  is  known  at  all  it  is  usually  called 
by  a word  also  meaning  buffalo.1 

As  regards  the  words  for  fowl,  they  are  traceable  in  the 
main  to  two  original  forms — kuba  and  nguku , with  a variant 
type,  nkoke.  A variant  of  the  first  term — kobo — exists  in  the 
Lihuku  of  the  lower  Semliki,  in  the  far  east ; and  kuba  is  the 
usual  rendering  of  “fowl”  amongst  the  Cameroons  coast  lan- 
guages and  some  of  the  Gaboon  dialects  on  the  far  west.  Over 
all  the  rest  of  the  Congo  basin  (except  in  parts  of  Lubaland), 
no  matter  which  of  the  three  divisions  are  concerned,  the  root 
nguku  prevails,  with  these  modifications  : — Somewhere  in  the 
west  nguku  became  altered  into  njusu,  juzu,  ncucu , and  this 
reached  the  western  Congo  as  nsusu , and  the  Babangi  as 
ntsusu.  In  the  far  north  of  the  Congo  basin,  however,  the 
original  Sudanese  word  for  fowl  (derived  by  Central  Africa 
from  Egypt  through  the  Sudan  scarcely  more  than  two  thou- 
sand years  ago)  took  the  form  of  nkoke , nkok! , and  finally 
reached  the  island  of  Fernando  Po  as  nkoe.  In  some  of  the 
Luba  and  Lunda  dialects  “ fowl  ” is  expressed  by  a term  nzolo , 
solo,  ozol\  which  may  be  a softening  of  njoso.  In  most  of  the 
Angola  and  Ovimbundu  languages  south-west  of  Congoland 
the  word  for  fowl  is  peculiar  and  local — sanji,  sanse.  On  the 
upper  Kwango  and  south  of  the  Kwanza  River  it  is  sosua , 
susoa  (a  variant,  no  doubt,  of  nsusu).  This  form  reaches 
Damaraland  as  njuhua , though  the  Herero  have  other  alterna- 
tive terms  for  this  domestic  bird — om/era  and  ohunguriva. 

A few  words  on  the  phonology  of  the  languages  of  the 

1 Basongomeno,  sumbuj  Kikuba,  tsaiij  YSbomz.,  geban  j Cameroons  languages, 
nyati,  nyare , nyaka  : all  words  which  can  also  be  applied  to  buffalo. 


88o  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Congo  basin  may  perhaps  fitly  terminate  this  essay.  Under 
this  heading  there  is  also  an  important  distinction  to  be 
observed  between  the  languagesof  the  First  Bantu  Invasion  and 
those  of  the  Second  and  Third.  The  north-west  Bantu 
language  group  possesses  in  many  of  its  members  that  com- 
bination of  guttural  and  labial  (kft,  gb,  ngb,  etc.)  which  is  such 
a marked  feature  of  negro  speech  in  the  forest  zone  of  Northern 
Equatorial  Africa,  from  the  Bari  of  the  mountain  Nile  (on  the 
east)  to  the  people  of  Senegambia  (on  the  west).  It  is  perhaps 
in  the  coast  region  between  Sierra  Leone,  the  lower  Niger, 
and  the  Cross  River  that  this  use  of  the  guttural-labial  is  most 
frequent.  In  the  transcription  of  these  languages  it  is  probably 
the  first  consonantal  combination  which  catches  the  eye  of  the 
European,  unused  as  he  is  in  his  own  speech  to  such  a colloca- 
tion.1 The  guttural-labial  exists  in  Northern  Equatorial  Africa 
independently  of  the  form  of  language  which  may  use  it.  It  is 
present  in  the  majority  of  the  north-western  Bantu  languages, 
and  in  some  of  the  adjoining  forms  of  Sudanian  speech,  as 
well  as  in  the  westernmost  Nilotic.  But  it  is  rather  of  West 
than  of  East  African  origin. 

Another  peculiarity  of  certain  Bantu  dialects  of  the  First 
Invasion  type  is  the  abrupt  ending  of  the  word  in  a consonant 
— a practice  so  foreign  to  the  Bantu  genius,  and  even  to  that 
group  of  Sudanian  languages  along  the  Nile-Congo-Shari 
water-parting  in  close  contact  with  the  northernmost  Bantu. 
On  the  other  hand,  it  is  a prominent  characteristic  of  the  semi- 
Bantu  or  non- Bantu  languages  of  the  upper  Cross  River, 
Benue,  or  middle  Niger.  In  the  Cameroons  region  and  the 
basin  of  the  Congo  the  geographical  distribution  of  this 
tendency  to  elide  the  final  vowel  and  terminate  the  word  with  a 
consonant  pursues  a curiously  serpentine  course  on  the  map. 

1 Much  unnecessary  fuss  is  made  in  some  manuals  as  to  the  difficulty  of  pro- 
nouncing kp,  gb,  etc.  It  needs  little  more  than  the  attempt  to  pronounce  a^ora  k 
before  a b or  a p,  though  in  some  dialects  the  combination  is  really  tri-literal,  and  a 
w should  come  after  the  b or  p.  The  three  breathings  are  so  fused  in  the  pronuncia- 
tion of  a native  that  they  sound  as  one  consonant,  and  consequently  this  guttural- 
labial  is  often  written  merely  / or  b.  In  the  mouths  of  the  south-central  or  eastern 
Bantu  it  merges  at  once  into  a kw  or  a gw.  In  the  Sudan  languages  there  are  rarer 
permutations  to  a simple  k or  g. 

It  has  occurred  to  the  present  writer  that  this  combination  of  guttural  and  labial 
(which  is  present  also  in  the  Fula  language)  once  existed  in  the  Mediterranean  basin, 
and  even  farther  north  in  Europe  or  Western  Asia.  Its  existence  seems  to  him  to 
have  given  rise  to  the  same  obscure  guttural  or  labial  pronunciation  in  the  earlier 
Aryan  languages  which  resulted  in  the  confusion  of  the  initial  b or  g in  roots  like 
bo  or  gate  (ox),  in  the  ambiguous  Latin  qu , transmuted  into / or // in  the  Italic  or 
Hellenic  dialects,  and  which  was  also  the  cause  from  which  diverged  the  / and  b of 
the  Brythonic  and  the  g or  k of  the  Goidelic  Kelts.  It  may  be  that  this  peculiar 
combination,  so  foreign  nowadays  to  European  throats  and  lips,  was  a heritage  of  the 
Iberian  prae-Aryan  languages  of  Europe  and  Western  Asia, 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  88 1 


From  the  upper  waters  of  the  Benue  it  permeates  much  of  the 
Cameroons  region,  whether  the  languages  are  Bantu  or  semi- 
Bantu,  but  on  the  whole  avoids  the  actual  coast.  It  is  a 
marked  feature  in  the  Fan  dialects  over  the  whole  hinterland 
of  the  Southern  Cameroons  and  Gaboon.  It  exists  in  a much 
diminished  degree  in  Teke,  but  almost  fades  away  in  the  valley 
of  the  western  Congo,  to  revive,  however,  prominently  in 
the  Buma  or  Boma  language  (which  indeed  is  spoken  on  both 
sides  of  the  western  Congo,  but  is  best  represented  along  the 
Kwa  or  lower  Kasai).  From  this  direction  the  tendency 
to  end  in  a consonant  passes  to  the  Bayaka,  and  to  nearly 
all  the  peoples  of  the  triangle  between  the  Kwango  and  the 
lower  Kasai.  It  then  follows  the  course  of  the  Sankuru 
upstream,  and  extends  to  that  of  the  Lukenye,  and  continues 
till  it  reaches  the  Manyema  country,  across  the  Lualaba-Congo, 
where  it  finally  dies  away  before  the  robust  vowels  of  the  Bantu 
languages  of  the  Second  Invasion.  This  feature  in  pronuncia- 
tion, which  is  also  combined  with  a certain  degree  of  relation- 
ship in  word-roots  and  syntax,  possibly  indicates  the  track 
of  some  long-vanished  race  movement,  either  from  the  north- 
west to  the  south-east,  or  vice  versa.  It  is  by  following  clues 
like  these  that  we  shall  eventually  put  together  with  some  degree 
of  probability  the  past  (unwritten)  history  of  Negro  Africa. 

In  a treatise  dealing  with  the  Bantu  languages  in  general 
(which  this  book  does  not  purport  to  be)  some  allusion  might 
also  be  made  to  the  prevalence  of  the  consonant  f in  the  Bantu 
and  non- Bantu  languages  of  the  north  and  north-east  basin  of 
the  Congo,  and  to  the  correspondingly  marked  aversion  to  f 
which  prevails  throughout  the  Bantu  languages  of  the  south-west 
(where  it  is  inevitably  transformed  into  h)  t , or  s),  though  these 
same  south-west  Bantu  dialects  have  such  an  affection  for  the 
cognate  v that  it  is  used  sometimes  in  preference  to  both  m and  k. 

A careful  examination  of  negro  phonology  would  probably 
reveal  how  much  language  permutation  was  affected  by  physical 
causes,  especially  those  due  to  self-inflicted  mutilations  of  the 
lips,  teeth,  and  nose.  A similar  elaborate  study  such  as  has 
been  commenced  by  the  Baptist  missionaries  now  on  the  Congo 
would  also  show  the  ease  with  which  on  the  one  hand  these 
languages  can  fluctuate,  change,  and  even  give  rise  to  abrupt 
new  births  ; yet  on  the  other  how  frequently  it  occurs  that  a 
dialect  once  born  (very  often  from  a sudden  fusion  of  two  or 
three  others)  can  continue  for  centuries,  like  the  speech  of  the 
Kongo  kingdom,  scarcely  more  altered  than  the  European 
languages  attached  to  a long-established  culture  and  civilization, 
ii. — 2 c 


882  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


APPENDIX  I 


THE  FERNANDIAN  OR  BUBE  LANGUAGE 


In  this  appendix  I shall  attempt  to  give  some  description  of  the 
interesting  language  of  Fernando  Po.  This,  like  the  people  who 
speak  it,  is  styled  “ Bube”  a word  really  meaning  “ Man,”  and  used 
as  means  of  hailing  or  greeting  one  another  by  the  Fernandians.  If 
this  primitive  people  really  have  any  general  name  for  themselves  and 
their  language,  it  is  possibly  Bawo.  Ediya , used  by  earlier  writers,  is 
nowhere  recognized  on  the  island. 

The  following  are  the  numerals,  as  derived  from  the  works  of  the 
Rev.  James  Clarke,  B.M.S.  (1848),  the  Rev.  Father  Joaquin  Juanola,  and 
the  unpublished  studies  of  the  Rev.  Theophilus  Parr,  M.A.1  They  are 
drawn  from  the  three  principal  dialects  of  the  island.2 

[Note. — These  numerals  are  given  in  their  simplest  root  forms 
divested  of  prefixes  in  most  cases.] 


One  . 
Two  . 
Three 
Four  . 
Five  . 
Six 


Seven 
Eight 
Nine  . 


-li  (muli,  buli,  sile,  etc.) ; -le,  -de  (nde),  -ne,  ni ; -ca,  -co. 
-iba,  -pa,  -mba  (Iba,  epa,  memba,  etc.). 

-ta,  -ita  (bita,  beta,  mata,  etc.). 

-ene,  -ele,  -ale. 

-to,  -co  (mito,  etc.). 

Dahah,  daha,  raha,  naha ; -laha  (mito  na  muli  = five 
and  one);  also  ’nanne  (i.e.  ‘and  one/  ‘five’  being 
understood). 

Daha  la  ni  (6+  1)  ; Ralani ; mito  laiba  = five  and  two, 
or  ’na  mepa  = ‘and  two’  (five,  understood). 
Da’laiba  (6  + 2);  ’na  meta  (i.e.  ‘and  three,’  five  being 
understood).  Da’iba  = eighth. 

Ani  na  bio  (‘one  from  ten’);  ’na  miene  or  na  ’ne 
(‘  and  four,’  five  being  understood)  ; bito  la  biele 
( = five  plus  four).  Da’bita  (6  + 3)  = ninth. 


1 Mr.  Parr  is  a clergyman  of  the  Primitive  Methodist  Church  (Bolton,  Lancs.) 
who  was  a missionary  for  some  years  in  the  island  of  Fernando  Po,  and  towards 
the  close  of  the  ’seventies  of  the  last  century  completed  a remarkable  study 
of  the  Bube  language,  not  as  yet  published,  but  kindly  placed  in  my  hands  for 
reference. 

2 The  spelling  of  the  following  Bube  words  is  my  own,  though  it  does  not  differ 
much  from  Mr.  Parr’s.  C=tsh  or  ch  ; 0 is  pronounced  like  o in  bo?ze.  In  the  Bube 
language  t and  ish  ( c ) are  almost  interchangeable,  and  /,  d , n,  and  r or  nd  likewise 
permute  with  facility.  The  same  remark  applies  with  even  more  emphasis  to  b and 
m.  The  above-mentioned  writers  inscribe  indifferently  ba  for  ?na , bi  for  mi , be  for  me. 
But  this  particular  permutation  is  one-sided : an  original  Bantu  b never  becomes  m in 
Bube. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  883 

Ten  . . Bio,  mid,  bieu ; bie,  mie,  mio ; mie-mu,  mie-nyo ; 

de-nyo.  Dion  or  Nion  sometimes  in  composition 
as  n=dion-de.  Also  ’na  to  (‘and  five,’  i.e.  five 
(understood)  and  five). 

Eleven  . Bieu  la  ni,  mie  na  muli,  or  mio’nne,  -’to  sile  (=5 
(understood)  (and)  5 + 1),  dion-de  =10+1. 

Twelve  . Bieu  or  Bio  laiba,  or  mie’mba  (and  other  combinations 
as  in  eleven). 

Thirteen  . Bio  la  bita,  mio  meta,  etc. 

Fourteen  . Bio  la  miele,  mio  miene,  etc. 


Fifteen 

Sixteen 

Seventeen 

Eighteen 

Nineteen 

Twenty 

Thirty 
Forty 
Fifty  . 
Hundred 
Thousand 
1500  . 
2000  . 

4000  . 


O ; biew’o  ; eo,  mie-eo,  -se-eo  ; bio  la  meto  ; de  co. 

O na  muli  (15  + 1)  ; biew’o  la  ni ; o’ne,  o-na-ni ; bio  la 
daha ; O onde. 

O na  mempa  (and  similarly  in  other  forms  to  sixteen). 

O na  meta  (and  similarly  in  other  forms  to  sixteen). 

Ane  or  Hane  na  ’ncila  ; O miene  ; bio  la  ’ne  na  bio. 

Di-cila,  ncila,  O-cila,  ancila  ; ici,  itsi  '[plural , ‘twenties’ 
= macila,  bad’]. 

Borapa  (?  twice  fifteen ),  bodrapa  ; dicila-bio. 

Maci  ’ma-apa,  baci  ’lapa. 

Maci  ’ma  mieu,  baci  ’ba  bieu. 

Mueda  or  Bueda  ; or  Era,  -eda. 

Mieda  [or  Bieda],  mieu  [or  bieu]. 

Bueda  O (i.e.  15  times  100). 

Deda  cila  \_probably  twenty  (cila)  times  ‘ great  hundred ’ 
(deda  or  dieda)]. 

Meda  or  Beda  cila-apa  [forty  (i.e.  twice-twenty)  times 
‘ great  ’ hundreds  = meda , plural  of  dieda~\. 


The  dialects  of  Fernando  Po  differ  somewhat,  and  the  language 
appears  to  have  altered  to  a certain  extent  since  the  days  when  it  was 
first  described  by  Clarke  (1841-8).1  The  numerals  here  given  represent 
most  of  the  recorded  types.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  principal  root 
for  ‘ one  ’ is  ne  or  /zz*  (becoming  in  some  pronunciations  de , le  or  It),  which 
differs  widely  from  the  forms  for  ‘ one  ’ on  the  Cameroons  mainland 
\-oko ; ca ; -mo].  The  root  -ne  or  nye  is  met  with  again  in  the  semi- 
Bantu  languages  of  the  Northern  Cameroons,  and  occurs  in  far-distant 


1 Clarke,  writing  in  1848,  states  that  the  most  widespread  of  the  Bube  dialects 
was  that  of  the  Bateti,  spoken  over  the  northern  third  of  the  island.  This  differed 
but  little  from  the  Bani.  Other  cognate  dialects  were  the  Bakaki  and  the 
Balilipa.  The  Boloko  was  a general  name  applied  to  the  dialects  of  the  south  and 
south-east,  the  influence  of  which  extended  also  to  the  north-east.  The  Boloko 
form  of  the  Fernandian  language  was  more  distinctly  different  from  the  other  four 
dialects. 

Thompson,  a member  of  the  Niger  Expedition  of  1841,  recorded  a vocabulary, 
but  declared  that  there  were  ten  dialects  in  the  island,  each  distinctly  different  the 
one  from  the  other.  His  information  probably  was  unreliable.  The  difference 
between  the  Fernandian  dialects  has  been  treated  at  a later  date  by  the  Rev.  Father 
Joaquin  Juanola,  a Spanish  priest  on  the  island. 


884  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Bantu  groups  like  Zulu.  It  is  obviously  identical  with  -nwe,  nye , 
meaning  finger.  In  the  original  Bantu  the  particle  Mu  or  Mo  meant 
‘ one/  and  Mune , Munwe  meant  ‘ one  finger.’ 

- The  abbreviated  -to  for  ‘ five’  in  Bube  may  be  a contraction  of  - tano , 
or  an  older  and  parallel  root-word  for  ‘five,’  co-existing  with  tano } 
The  word  for  ‘ six  ’ — Daha , Naha , Raha — is  perhaps  a worn-down 
corrupted  relic  of  the  eastern  and  southern  Bantu  - tandatu , which 
apparently  exists  in  the  Manyan  language  of  the  upper  Cross  River1 2 
and  in  the  languages  of  Tanganyika  as  -tanda  ( Betanda , Mutanda , with 
movable  prefix).  There  is  no  trace  anywhere  in  Bube  of  the  -sambo, 
- toba , -ambi,  and  dibwa  forms  for  ‘ six/  ‘ seven,’  ‘ eight/  and  ‘ nine/ 
though  these  exist  markedly  on  the  Cameroons  mainland. 

The  Bube  word  for  ‘ ten  ’ seems  to  have  been  originally  bio,  bieu  ; a 
root  which  also  exists  in  Manyan,  a semi-Bantu  language  of  the  upper 
Cross  River,  and  in  the  Bonken  dialect  spoken  on  the  upper  waters  of 
the  Cameroons  River,  and  which  apparently  reappears  in  the  root  -bo 
or  -pu  here  and  there  in  the  Babati  and  Soko  dialects  of  the  north- 
eastern Congo.  In  the  semi-Bantu  language  of  Indiki  (Cameroons), 
‘ ten  ’ is  expressed  by  Bihoar , bohar , or  yohar.  This  with  other  indi- 
cations [such  as  the  bu-moti — i.e.  five-one — ma-bo — ‘ fives  ’ or  ‘ ten  ’ of 
the  Babati  dialects  of  north-east  Congo]  suggests  that  the  Fernandian 
and  kindred  words  for  ten  ( Biu , bo,  id ,)  may  have  arisen  from  the 
reduplication  of  an  old  root  for  five — bo — and  be  an  indication  of  the 
ancient  quinary  system  which  preceded  the  decimal.  In  Fernando  Po, 
Bid,  bie,  bieu,  for  ‘ ten  ’ runs  concurrently  with  another  term,  Mie,  mieu, 
mid  (which  slightly  suggests  the  mine  of  Isubu  and  the  Ituri-Semliki 
languages),  while  there  is  also  a rare  form,  Dion , found  in  the  south-east 
of  Fernando  Po,  which  may  be  the  Diomi  of  the  Cameroons  mainland — 
derived  from  the  almost  universal  Bantu  root,  dikumi. 

The  root-word  for  ‘ fifteen  ’ is  remarkable — O or  Ed.  It  is  also  a 
feature  worth  reporting  that  Fernandian  should  possess  a special  word 
for  ‘ fifteen/  as  an  additional  suggestion  that  the  Bantu  speech  of  the 
Bube,  like  so  many  non-Bantu  languages  of  Central  Africa,  was  based 
on  a quinary  system  in  its  original  numerals.  There  is  a separate  and 
distinct  word  for  ‘ fifteen  / in  the  Cross  River  languages,  but  it  bears  no 
resemblance  to  the  Bube  O.  In  the  semi-Bantu  Indiki  language  of  the 
Cameroons,  ‘ fifteen  ’ is  Buni,  and  in  the  Soko  and  neighbouring  north 
Congo  Bantu  dialects  there  is  also  an  independent  word  for  fifteen — 
Bokolomoi .3  In  Nyamnyam  there  is  a separate  word  for  ‘ fifteen  ’ — Hira. 

The  word  for  ‘ twenty/  as  is  also  the  case  in  north-east  Congo  and 
in  many  of  the  non-Bantu  languages  of  Central  Africa,  is  quite  distinct 
from  the  word  for  ‘ten.’  In  Bube  it  is,  in  its  oldest  type,  -cila  ( di-chila ). 
The  abbreviated  form  icV , itsi ’ recalls  the  hit ’ of  the  Indiki  of  the 

1 This  root  is  -ron  in  Ejam  and  several  languages  of  the  upper  Cross  River,  and 
-to,  -ton,  -otoii,  tson , and  tan  in  the  semi-Bantu  languages  of  the  region  north  and 
south  of  the  Benue  River.  See  also  Madi  language,  p.  842. 

2 Also  in  the  semi-Bantu  languages  north-west  of  the  lower  Benue  River. 

3 As  above  set  forth,  ‘ five  ’ in  Lihuku  of  the  lower  Semliki  is  Boko  (which  may- 
be bo-ko  = one  ‘five’),  in  the  Ababua-Babati  groups  it  is  Bumuti pu- moti  = one  ‘five’); 
in  Kele  (north-east  Congo  bend)  ‘five’  is  boomwi  (bo-omzoi=a.  ‘five,’  one  ‘five’). 
‘ Fifteen’  in  Soko  and  Poto  is  Bokolo-homoi. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  885 

Cameroons  hinterland  and  the  -ti  of  several  of  the  semi -Bantu 
languages. 

What  is  particularly  interesting,  however,  is  the  similarity  that  di-cila 
offers  (seeing  how  frequently  in  Bube  ndy  d becomes  /,  n , or /becomes 
c , ts)  to  the  rina,  nierina  of  Indiki,  and  the  li-tinda , licinda  which 
stand  for  ‘twenty’  in  the  Kele,  Poto,  Ngombe,  and  other  languages  of 
the  north  and  north-east  Congo. 

In  Bube  there  is  no  trace  of  the  widespread  Bantu  root  for  hundred 
— kama  or  kana.  The  root- word  bueda , -eda  is  shared  with  Duala 
( egbwea ) and  Mabea  of  South  Cameroons,  but  seems  to  be  in  an  older 
form  in  Fernando  Po. 

It  might  be  rash  at  the  present  time  to  pronounce  a dogmatic 
opinion  on  the  nearest  affinities  of  the  Bube  language.  A careful 
examination  of  the  material  collected  by  Clarke,  Juanola,  Luddington, 
Barleycorn,  and  Theophilus  Parr  should  first  be  made.  But  this  much 
is  clear : the  Bube  language  (divided  into  some  three  dialects)  is 
emphatically  a member  of  the  north-western  group  (the  “First 
Invasion  ”)  of  the  Bantu  family,  though  it  preserves  a few  archaic 
features,  especially  in  the  form  in  which  it  was  written  down  by  the 
Rev.  James  Clarke  sixty  years  ago.  It  has  relatively  little  close  affinity 
with  the  existing  languages  of  the  Cameroons,  especially  its  nearest 
neighbours,  Isubu  and  Duala,  and  must  represent,  like  Herero,  the 
termination  of  a very  ancient  Bantu  impulse.  The  remarkable  re- 
semblances which  it  offers  in  certain  points  with  the  languages  of  the 
north-east  Congo  basin  and  Ruwenzori  may  indicate  that  the  first  east- 
to-west  march  of  the  Bantu  languages  and  influence  from  the  region  of 
the  Nile  sources  (by  way  of  the  Mubangi  basin)  not  only  created  the 
semi-Bantu  languages  now  existing  in  the  region  between  the  Cameroons, 
Cross  River,  Benue,  and  Shari,  but  in  its  last  expiring  effort  colonized 
the  island  of  Fernando  P6. 

Some  of  the  word-roots  in  Bube  which  cannot  be  traced  elsewhere 
in  the  intervening  languages  display  a striking  resemblance  to  words 
of  similar  meaning  in  the  Kuamba  language  of  northern  Ruwenzori,1 
or  to  the  adjoining  Lihuku  of  the  lower  Semliki  valley  and  Kibira  of 
the  southern  Ituri  Forest.  Marked  affinities  also  exist  with  Soko  and 
Kele  of  the  north-east  Congo  bend,  and  a resemblance  (somewhat  less) 
with  Ngala , Ngombe , and  Bangi.  Nor  can  the  philologist  overlook  an 
equally  obvious  connection  with  the  semi-Bantu  languages  of  the  upper 
Cross  River,  Cameroons  hinterland,  and  even  Benue  basin. 

Again,  there  are  words  in  Bube  which  do  not  reappear  in  a survey  of 
the  Bantu  field  until  one  examines  the  languages  of  Tanganyika,  Luba- 
land,  and  even  of  East  Africa.  Other  roots  in  the  vocabulary  are  of 
classical  Bantu,  foreign  to  the  existing  dialects  of  the  Cameroons 
coast.  Intercommunication  with  the  adjoining  coast  during  the  last 
three  hundred  years  has  introduced  a few  loan  words  from  Duala  or 
Isubu ; but  the  general  facies  of  the  Bube  language,  the  elements  of  its 
vocabulary,  evince  no  recent  common  origin  with  the  modern  languages 
of  the  Cameroons,  nor  much  intercourse  with  the  mainland  until  the 
Fernandian  speech  had  become  stereotyped  by  long  isolation  in  its 
present  form. 

1 Vide  Author’s  Uganda  Protectorate. 


886  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Fernandian  shares  with  certain  languages  of  the  northern  Congo 
(. Lolo  and  Kele ) a tendency  to  confuse  m and  b,  with  a prejudice  in 
favour  of  b.  Thus  the  first  and  third  prefixes  (Mu)  are  often  rendered 
as  Bu-  or  Bo-,  the  fourth  prefix,  Mi-,  becomes  Bi-,  the  sixth,  Ala-,  takes 
the  same  form  as  the  second — Ba-.  N,  l,  d , z,  and  less  frequently  t, 
permutate  in  the  same  manner,  and  an  original  Bantu  mb  tends  to 
become  b or  p , while  nd,  nt  are  softened  into  d,  t,  z,  n,  or  even  h}  In 
the  western  parts  of  the  island  the  older  pronunciation  of  in  and  n 
seems  to  be  more  fully  retained  ; though  in  the  other  dialects  the 
natives  seem  scarcely  able  to  discriminate  between  m and  b,  and  n and 
d (or  l)  : thus  in  the  western  part  of  Fernando  Po  the  word  for  “ tree  ” 
is  mati  (a  very  old  Bantu  form).  The  plural  is  a somewhat  eccentric 
one,  mati.  These  forms  become  in  eastern  Fernando  Po  buti  and  bati. 
In  like  manner  muaiso  (woman),  mwiri  (smoke),  mwe  (spirit),  etema  or 
mutema  (heart),  nsemia  (dream),  mona  or  omona1  2 (child)  of  the  west 
and  north,  become  buddso,  bum,  ^we,  ete^a  or  buteba.,  se^ia,  ^o/a  in  the 
east.  Moso  (fire),  pi.  meso,  becomes  in  some  mouths  boso,  pi.  beso 
(thus  liable  to  be  confused  with  boso , face). 

As  regards  the  persistence  of  the  original  Bantu  prefixes  in  Bube, 
the  first  and  second  (Mu-,  ba-),  third  and  fourth  (Mu-,  mi-),  fifth  and 
sixth  (Bi-,  ma-)  are  present  in  little  altered  shape.  There  are  traces 
even  of  the  fuller,  definite  form — the  Umu -,  Aba , Imi -,  Edi  (ei)  of  the 
more  classical  Bantu.  The  seventh  (Ei-)  is,  as  elsewhere  in  the  north- 
western Bantu,  reduced  to  E-,  with  the  eighth  (Bi-)  as  a plural.  The 
ninth  (iV-)  is  present,  but  the  tenth  (Zi-n-)  is  reduced  to  I-  or  N-,  the 
eleventh  (Lu-)  is  well  represented,  and  takes  either  the  sixth  (ma-)  or 
tenth  (A7-)  as  a plural.  The  twelfth  prefix  (Tu-)  is  used  as  a plural  to 
the  seventeenth  (St-),  which  is  one  of  the  commonest  prefixes  in  the 
Bube  language,3  and  is  used  in  a diminutive  sense.  The  form  of  the 
seventeenth  prefix  in  Fernandian  Si-  is  interesting  because  of  its 
correspondence  with  the  same  type  of  this  seventeenth  prefix  in  one  or 
two  languages  of  the  upper  Cross  River  (Manyan  and  Nsko),  and  the 
Kele  and  Soko  dialects  of  the  north-east  Congo. 

In  Bube,  as  in  nearly  the  entirety  of  the  northern  and  north-western 
Bantu  field,  the  Ka-  (thirteenth)  and  Ku-  (fifteenth)  prefixes  are 
virtually  extinct,  though  they  linger  in  a few  nouns  or  adverbial  forms. 
In  Bube  the  fifteenth  prefix  (Ku-)  is  retained  in  one  or  two  locative 

adverbs  (0  boso  = before,4 * *  0 = from,  Oboho  = above,  Oci=  below),  and  in 

(little-used)  infinitives  to  verbs  (O  tapa  to  show,  O-elela  to  call,  O-adi  to 
carry,  etc.).  The  thirteenth  (Ka-)  remains  only  in  connection  with 
adverbial  numbers — as  Kane  = once,  Kaepa  = twice,  Kaheta  = thrice, 
Kaele  = four  times,  Kaito=  five  times. 

The  locative  particle  or  sixteenth  prefix,  Pa-,  has  become  Ha-,  and 
is  only  used  in  connection  with  a few  adverbs  of  place,  such  as  Halo 

1 H is  sometimes  very  strongly  aspirated  in  Bube. 

2 From  the  old  Bantu  Umu-ana. 

3 Sinki= a little  fly  : pi.  Tdinki.  Seci=  a small  antelope  : pi.  Tweci.  Sinyodi—d. 

small  bird  : pi.  Tonyddi.  Saha  = 2i  stick  : pi.  Twahta.  Maope  or  MS  dpe  is  “water”  (a 

collective  plural  with  sixth  prefix) ; Todpc  or  Tope  means  “a  little  water,”  or  “mud”  : 

cf.  p.  837.  [The  form  Madpe  for  water  is  corrupted  in  the  north  and  east  of  Fernando 

Po  into  Bopel\  4 Sometimes  met  with  in  the  form  Koboso. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  887 

(older  Bantu,  Pano)  = here,  Hali=  there,  i/tf  = with,  Hatam  = beyond. 
Of  the  other  familiar  Bantu  locative  particles  mu , niy  and  nda  in  Fer- 
nandian,  as  in  most  of  the  Cameroons,  north  and  west  Congo  languages, 
only  nda  persists,  in  the  form  of  a suffix  -la.  But  in  Fernandian  there 
is  a separate  phrase,  arimo , meaning  “inside,”  “within,”  which  recalls 
the  classical  Bantu,  a-li-mo  = he  is  within.  The  common  form  for  “in,” 
however,  is  alo. 


APPENDIX  II 

BIBLIOGRAPHY  OF  CONGO-CAMEROONS  LANGUAGES 

The  languages  of  the  Congo  basin  have  received  far  less  attention 
at  the  hands  of  Congo  explorers  than  should  have  been  the  case, 
considering  that  in  their  structure  and  relationships  so  much  of  the 
past  history  of  the  Congo  peoples  is  expressed.  The  Congo  State, 
though  it  has  produced  magnificent  works  of  ethnography,  has  with 
only  two  exceptions  done  little  for  the  languages  of  the  Congo.  It 
has  published  the  fine  work  of  Father  Van  Acker  on  the  Tabwa 
language  (of  south-eastern  Tanganyika),  which  had  previously  been 
grammaticized  by  Father  De  Beerst , and  one  or  two  manuals  of 
the  mixture  of  dialects  known  as  BANGALA,  which  has  been  adopted 
as  a kind  of  lingua  franca  all  over  the  northern  basin  of  the 
Congo.  Pere  Cambier,  a Roman  Catholic  missionary,  dealt  with  the 
real  NGALA  (. Mangala ) language  in  a small  book  published  at  Brussels 
in  1891  p and  Pere  Declercq  wrote  a short  grammar  and  vocabulary  of 
the  Luba  dialect  of  the  Bena-Lulua .2  The  Swedish  Mission  of  the 
western  Congo  has  published  studies  (in  Swedish)  of  KONGO  dialects  ; 
the  Rev.  W.  M.  Morrison , of  the  American  Presbyterian  Mission,  has 
produced  an  excellent  dictionary  and  grammar  of  Luba;  and  the  cor- 
rupt Bantu  language  known  as  Lolo  or  Lunkundu  has  been  illustrated 
by  two  members  of  the  Congo  Balolo  Mission  ( J . and  F.  T.  McKittrick). 
Prominent  in  importance  come  the  short  vocabularies  of  Mr.  Emil 
Tordayf  which  for  the  first  time  reveal  to  us  the  nature  of  the  Bantu 
dialects  east  of  the  Kongo  domain,  and  of  the  whole  region  lying 
between  the  Kasai  and  the  Kwango  ( Bayaka , Bambala , Bahuana). 
Dr.  A.  Sims , the  celebrated  medical  missionary  and  oldest  living 
European  settler  on  the  Congo,  has  issued  a vocabulary  in  two  small 
volumes  of  the  Teke  ( Bateke ) speech,  and  also  produced  early  in  the 
day  a particularly  interesting  study  of  the  “ Yalulema”  or  SOKO  lan- 
guage of  the  Aruwimi  confluence  and  lower  Lomami.4  The  present 
writer  had  preceded  him  in  regard  to  eastern  Teke  by  giving  a short 
vocabulary  of  that  language  (together  with  Buma  or  Boma  and  Yanzi) 

1 La  Langue  Congolaise. 

2 Grajnmaire  de  la  La7igue  des  Bena-Lidua  : Pere  Declercq.  Brussels,  1897. 

3 Journal  of  the  Royal  Anthropological  Institute.  Mr.  Torday  has  also  contri- 
buted in  MS.  vocabularies  of  the  Sango  language  of  the  northern  Mubangi,  the 
Bakuba  of  the  Sankuru,  Basongomeno , Baboma , and  Ababua. 

4 All  these  were  published  by  Hodder  and  Stoughton  about  1886. 


888  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


in  his  work  on  The  River  Congo,  etc.,  published  in  1884.  He — the 
author  of  this  book — also  illustrated  some  of  the  languages  of  the 
northern  Congo  (“  Bangala ,”  Bapoto , “ Ngombe  ”)  in  his  work  on  the 
Uganda  Protectorate,  these  vocabularies  being  derived  from  natives  of 
that  region.  He  also  gave  vocabularies  in  the  same  work  of  th zMundu, 
Makarka  ( eastern  Nyamnyam ),  Madi , Lendu , Mbuba , Bambute,  Lihuku, 
Kuamba , Kibira , Lukonjo , and  Kabwari — languages  of  the  north- 
eastern frontiers  of  the  Congo  State.  In  his  work  on  British  Central 
Africa  he  illustrated  Kiguha , Manyema  of  Eastern  Congoland,  and  the 
languages  spoken  round  the  south-west,  south,  and  south-east  coasts  of 
Tanganyika  ( Kiemba , Kilunga , Kimambwe , Kifipa ).  Father  Colombaroli , 
an  Italian  missionary,  compiled  a short  grammatical  sketch  and 
vocabulary  of  western  NYAMNYAM  ( Azande ).1  Captain  Guy  Burrows 
gave  an  imperfect  (but  still  valuable)  vocabulary  of  Manbettu  in  The 
Land  of  the  Pygmies.  In  the  opposite  extremity  of  the  Congo  basin 
— the  extreme  south-west — our  ignorance  has  been  a little  dispelled  by 
the  work  of  Henrique  de  Carvalho , the  Portuguese  explorer,  to  whom 
.we  owe  the  first  (and  perhaps  only  existing)  grammatical  sketch  of 
the  Lunda  language,2  besides  a number  of  vocabularies  in  the  ethno- 
graphical section  of  his  great  book,  Expedi^ad  Portugueza  ao  Muatian- 
vua.  Unfortunately,  these  vocabularies,  though  they  give  an  important 
hint  here  and  there,  are  very  scanty,  and  the  words  are  not  always 
correctly  transcribed.  Other  vocabularies  {Umbundu,  Kioko,  etc.),  also 
of  a not  reliable  character,  were  given  by  Capello  and  Ivens  in  their 
book  As  terras  de  Iacca.  The  great  traveller  Cameron  appended  to  his 
Across  Africa  a short  list  of  words  of  the  Rua  dialect  of  the  Luba 
group.  Mr.  C.  A.  Szuan  in  1892  published  Notes  on  the  Grammatical 
Construction  of  Chiluba , the  dialect  of  Luba  spoken  in  Katanga.  This 
little  book  is  of  great  interest.  Mr.  E.  W.  Smith  has  given  us  an 
admirable  study  of  the  I LA  or  Chila  language,  spoken  in  the  middle 
part  of  the  Zambezi-Congo  water-parting,  and  M.  facottet  has  written 
an  excellent  and  scientific  grammar  of  the  Luyi  or  Barotse  language, 
which  extends  its  range  to  the  sources  of  the  Kasai. 

In  Stanley's  two  books — Through  the  Dark  Continent  zudln  Darkest 
Africa — he  gives  a few  short,  imperfect,  sometimes  incorrect,  but  still 
particularly  precious  vocabularies  of  Congo  languages  (main  Upper 
Congo  and  Aruwimi  Forest).  Several  of  these  have  enabled  one  to 
arrive  at  interesting  conclusions  regarding  the  distribution  of  various 
language  groups.  The  inaccuracies  are  mainly  due  to  obvious  clerical 
or  printers’  errors. 

There  are  a few  linguistic  notes  of  importance  in  the  works 
of  Wissmann , Wolf  and  S.  P.  Verner  as  to  the  Bakuba , Luba , and 
Pygmy  (Batwa)  dialects.  Dr.  David  has  written  on  the  Pygmy 
language  in  the  Globus  of  Brunswick,  1904.  Dr.  Heli  Chatelain  is  the 
only  competent  authority  (living  or  dead),  so  far,  on  the  languages  of 
Angola  and  the  middle  Kwango  ( Kimbundu , Umbangala , etc.)  (though 
Serpa  Pinto  published  some  lists  of  words  recorded  in  South-East 
Angola — not  particularly  correct),  and  the  Ovimbundu  (Umbundu)  of 
Bihe  (Viye)  has  been  scientifically  treated  by  the  American  missionary 
Rev.  W.  M.  Stover. 

1 Cairo,  1895.  2 Methodo  pratico  para  f altar  a Lingua  de  Lunda. 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  889 

With  regard  to  the  still  little  explored  region  of  French  Congo 
north  of  the  Congo  estuary,  there  were  a few  linguistic  notes  of  im- 
portance dealing  with  the  Bavili  dialect  of  Kakongo  in  Mr.  R.  E. 
Dennett's  book  At  the  Back  of  the  Black  Man's  Mind.  Otherwise, 
besides  the  rather  grotesque  and  not  very  accurate  transcriptions  of 
these  Kakongo  and  Luango  dialects  by  the  Catholic  missionaries  of 
the  eighteenth  and  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  centuries,  we  knew  very 
little  of  the  Bantu  languages  between  the  estuary  of  the  Congo  and  the 
mouth  of  the  Ogowe  until  Father  A.  Declercq  published  his  remarkable 
Grammar  of  KiOMBE  (. Mayombe ) in  1907.  This  is  a sufficient  illustra- 
tion in  general  of  the  Kakongo  dialects  of  the  Luango  coast.  There 
are  a few  scattered  vocabularies  in  the  works  of  the  Marquis  de 
Compiegne  and  of  Paul  dti  Chaillu , illustrating  the  Bantu  dialects  in 
the  basin  of  the  lower  Ogowe.  The  Aduma  language  of  that  river  has 
been  well  treated  by  Father  Dahin  in  his  vocabulary. 

The  MPONGWE  language  has  been  quite  sufficiently  illustrated  by 
numerous  writers — French,  British,  and  American  missionaries — at 
different  times  between  1840  and  1890.  The  Rev.  Hamilton  Nassau  has 
given  a sketch  of  the  Benga  language  of  Corisco.  The  Fan  language 
has  been  described  and  illustrated  by  the  late  Rev.  H.  M.  Adams  (and 
H.  Nassau),  by  Mrs.  Marling  (American  Baptist  Mission),  by  Osorio , a 
Spaniard,  and,  quite  recently,  by  Mr.  G.  L.  Bates  ( M.S. ).  The  Bantu 
languages  of  the  South  Cameroons  (Banoho,  Bapuku)  have  been  described 
in  the  Mittheilungen  des  Seminars  fur  Orientalische  Sprachen  by  Father 
G.  P.  Adams ; and  the  German  explorers  Hutter  and  Hoesejnann  have 
given  short  vocabularies  of  the  Bali  and  Indiki  of  the  Cameroons 
hinterland.  The  Baya  group  of  the  upper  basin  of  the  Sanga,  on  the 
north-western  edge  of  the  Congo  basin,  has  been  dealt  with  briefly  by 
M.  Clozel  (1895).  The  important  Duala  language  of  the  Cameroons 
estuary  has  received  ample  treatment  at  the  hands  of  German  mission- 
aries, their  studies  being  mainly  published  in  Mittheilungen  des  Seminars 
fur  Orientalische  Sprachen.  In  this  valuable  periodical  has  also  appeared 
the  studies  of  the  Kirundi  language  of  the  north  end  of  Tanganyika 
by  Father  van  der  Burgt. 

The  first  person  to  illustrate  the  Duala  language  was  the  Rev.  Alfred 
Saker,  the  pioneer  Baptist  missionary  of  the  Cameroons.1  Another 
missionary  of  that  society — the  Rev.  foseph  Merrick — was  the  first  to 
describe  the  ISUBU  dialect.  The  Rev.  Quentin  W.  Thomson,  the  son-in- 
law  of  Saker,  printed  a vocabulary  of  Bakwiri.  C.  H.  Richardson , of  the 
B.M.S.,  wrote  an  excellent  treatise  on  the  Bakundu  language  of  the 
hinterland,  published  by  the  Berlin  Ethnological  Society.  Sir  Harry 
fohnston , when  Vice-Consul  in  the  Cameroons,  collected  (with  some 
assistance  by  the  Revs.  J.  J.  Fuller  and  John  Pinnock,  B.M.S.)  a consider- 
able amount  of  information  (not  as  yet  published)  on  nearly  all  the 
Cameroons  Bantu  and  semi-Bantu  languages  from  the  Rio  del  Rey  to 
the  River  Sanaga  (Duala,  Isubu,  Bakwiri,  Basa,  Abo,  Bonkeh,  Barombi, 
Barundo,  etc.  etc.)  and  inland  to  the  upper  Cross  River. 

Regarding  the  island  of  Fernando  Po,  the  language  of  the  Bube  or 
Ediya  was  first  set  forth  in  the  remarkable  grammatical  sketch  and 


A Grammar,  Vocabulary,  and  Translations  of  portions  of  the  Bible. 


890  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

vocabularies  of  the  Rev.  James  Clarke , who  is  so  much  referred  to 
in  the  first  chapters  of  this  book.  After  a long  interval  of  time,  the 
still  mysterious  language  of  Fernando  Po  was  further  illustrated  by 
a Spanish  priest,  Father  Joaquin  Juanola , whose  information  was  im- 
portant, as  showing  to  some  extent  the  varying  dialects  of  the  island. 

But  the  really  complete  and  masterly  study  of  this  most  important 
outlying  member  of  the  Bantu  family  was  made  by  the  Rev. 
Theos.  Parr , M.A.,  assisted  by  Revs.  W.  B.  Luddington  and  W.  N. 
Barleycorn , of  the  Primitive  Methodist  Mission.  This  was  partially 
published  by  them  on  the  island  of  Fernando  Po  in  1877,  but  the  bulk 
of  the  work  still  remains  in  manuscript,  and  will,  I hope,  see  the  light 
before  long. 

As  its  area  comes  within  the  limits  of  the  Congo  basin,  reference 
might  be  made  here  to  the  wonderfully  complete  grammar  and 
dictionary  of  the  Bemba  or  Emba  language  by  W.  Govan  Robertson , 
of  the  London  Missionary  Society.  This  language  is  almost  identical 
with  the  one  referred  to  by  the  present  writer  as  Kiwemba  or  Kiemba. 

Except  in  my  work  on  British  Central  Africa,  I do  not  think  the 
BlSA  language  of  south  Bangweulu  had  ever  been  dealt  with  until 
the  very  complete  study  of  it  ( Wisa ) was  issued  by  Mr.  A.  C.  Madan  ; 
and  no  one  else  but  myself,  so  far,  has  described  the  Bantu  dialects 
within  the  limits  of  the  Chambezi  basin  (. Ichi-wandia , Ishi-nyikha). 

But  the  greatest  share  in  the  illustration  of  the  languages  of  the 
Congo  basin  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  English  Baptist  missionaries. 
Among  these,  Dr.  Holman  Bentley  almost  entirely  confined  himself  to 
dealing  with  the  KONGO  language,  the  standard  speech  and  some  of  its 
dialects,  but  also  gave  a little  further  information  about  the  tongues 
spoken  to  the  south  and  east  of  Stanley  Pool.  The  Rev.  W.  H.  Staple- 
ton's  principal  published  work,  the  COMPARATIVE  HANDBOOK  OF 
CONGO  Languages,  illustrates  the  Bangi  ( Yanzi ),  Lolo , Bangala , 
Bapoto , Ngombe , Soko,  and  Kele  languages  (besides  giving  notes  on 
other  forms  of  speech  and  the  first  published  reference  to  the  Mpombo 
or  Banza  non-Bantu  language  of  the  western  Mubangi).  His  un- 
published studies  deal  with  the  Babali , Bangba , Bakusu , Bangobango , 
and  Bagenya  of  the  Aruvvimi,  Lindi,  and  north-east  Congo ; with 
the  Teke  (Bateke)  of  the  west ; and,  lastly,  with  the  non-Bantu  Bakumu 
or  Bamanga  language  of  the  Lindi  River  and  of  Stanley  Falls, 
the  character  of  which  he  was  the  first  explorer  to  reveal.  The  Rev. 
John  Whitehead  has  published  an  admirable  grammar  and  vocabulary  of 
Lo-BOBANGI,  the  speech  of  the  Ba-bangi  or  Bayanzi.  Grenjell  discovered 
and  illustrated  the  Mpombo  (Banza)  dialect  of  the  western  Mubangi,  and 
collected  an  example  of  the  language  of  the  Bambute  Pygmies  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  M abode  country  (a  corrupt  Manbettu).  The  Rev.  R.  V. 
Glennie  has  compiled  an  important  vocabulary  of  the  northernmost  dialect 
of  Luba  from  the  Sankuru  River  (which  he  styled  Moiyo ) ; and  the  Rev. 
William  Forjeitt , of  Bopoto,  has  collected  short  studies  of  the  north  Congo 
Ngombe  (Bantu)  dialects,  and  has  discovered  the  remarkable  non- 
Bantu  language  of  Ndonga  (eastern  Mongala  River),  which  turns  out 
to  be  related  to  Stapleton’s  Bamanga  of  the  Stanley  Falls.  Bentley’s 
Grammar  and  Dictionary  of  the  Kongo  Language  is  one  of  the  greatest 
books  in  Bantu  literature,  and  won  him  his  doctor’s  degree  at  Glasgow 


LANGUAGES  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN  891 

University.  Great  praise  should  certainly  also  be  awarded  to  the  lately 
deceased  W.  H.  Stapleton.  Although  there  are  only  two  published 
books  to  his  credit — the  Comparative  Handbook , already  alluded  to,  and 
a Grammar  of  Bangala — he  has  left  a large  amount  of  MS.  in  a con- 
dition to  be  published  later  on,  from  which  the  present  writer  has 
derived  important  information  inserted  in  this  book. 

Lastly,  it  might  be  mentioned  that  Mr.  G.  B.  Michell,  formerly 
H.B.M.  Vice-Consul  on  the  Upper  Congo  (now  Consul  in  Paris),  has 
compiled  a Comparative  Table  of  Languages  Spoken  in  the  Congo  Free 
State  which  has  not  yet  been  printed  in  full.  This  is  a series  of 
vocabularies  illustrating  the  structure  of  the  Bambuttu , Bakumu , Babali , 
Bamanga , Bamboli , Lokele , and  Abobwa  of  North-East  Congoland,  the 
Baluba  of  the  middle  Lomami,  Lunkundu  or  Lolo  of  the  Equatorial 
Congo,  and  the  Swahili  dialect  spoken  in  Eastern  Congoland.  Mr. 
Michell’s  studies  of  Bamanga  supplement  and  confirm  those  of  the 
Rev.  W.  H.  Stapleton.  He  has  kindly  allowed  me  to  consult  these 
vocabularies  and  to  reproduce  therefrom  the  Bamanga  and  Bamboli 
numerals  needed  to  illustrate  the  theories  advanced  in  this  chapter. 


APPENDIX  III 

THE  FAN  DIALECTS 

SINCE  the  preceding  information  was  printed  I have  received  from  Mr. 
G.  L.  Bates  of  the  Cameroons  interesting  information  regarding  the 
languages  spoken  between  the  Sanga-Ja  rivers  of  North-West  Congoland 
and  the  Cameroons  and  Gaboon  coast  belt.-  These  would  all  seem  to 
belong  to  the  Fan  or  Fanwe  group,  between  the  Sanaga  River  in  the 
north  and  the  Ogowe  in  the  south;  but  this  group  is  again  divisible  into 
two  very  distinct  sections  : Fan  and  Njiem.  The  Njiem  (also  called 
Zimu  and  Njima — the  last  being  the  term  employed  in  my  ethnographical 
map),  though  they  inhabit  the  Congo  basin  at  a distance  of  several 
hundred  miles  from  the  coast,  are  nevertheless  closely  connected  with 
the  Mabea  of  the  coast  belt  between  the  rivers  Sanaga  and  Benito.  The 
Fan  division  includes  all  the  intervening  tribes  (except  the  scattered 
pygmies)  : Yaunde , Mvela , Bane , Ngumba , Bulu,  Ntum , Zaman , Make, 
Mfan , Fanwe , etc.  Osieba,  Basieba  is  merely  a foreign  name  applied  to 
the  Fan  people  by  the  coast  tribes  of  the  Gaboon. 

The  Njiem  or  Njima  division  probably  includes  also  the  Bakelo , 
Bakunde , Kunabembe , Bamasa , and  Bagundu  of  the  upper  Sanga  basin. 

Both  the  divisions  of  the  Fan  group  belong  to  the  Bantu  family 
(“First  Invasion”),  though  they  constitute  an  exceedingly  worn-down, 
corrupt  Bantu  type.  In  some  features  they  offer  interesting  resemblances 
to  the  languages  of  the  upper  Ituri,  lower  Semliki,  and  western  slopes 
of  Ruwenzori. 


CHAPTER  XXXII 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES:  I.  METEOROLOGY, 
GEOLOGY,  AND  BOTANY  OF  THE  CONGO  BASIN 

IT  might  be  convenient  to  the  reader  of  this  book  who 
wishes  to  derive  a comprehensive  idea  of  the  general 
aspects  of  the  Congo  basin  if  I briefly  summarize  here 
some  of  the  more  striking  features — positive  and  negative — of 
its  Natural  History. 

In  the  chapters  dealing  geographically  with  the  course  of 
the  main  Congo  and  of  its  great  tributaries,  such  information  as 

o < o ' 

could  be  obtained  from  the  notebooks  of  missionaries  and 
others  was  given  as  to  the  Meteorology.  The  statistics  under 
this  head  are  very  imperfect,  but  permit  us  to  form  a general 
idea  of  the  Congo  climate.  The  least  rainy  part  of  the  whole 
region  is  very  possibly  the  narrow  coast  strip  on  either  side  of 
the  Congo  mouth,  where  the  average  rainfall  (which  varies 
very  much  from  one  year  to  another)  is  possibly  not  more  than 
38  inches  per  annum.  We  have  here  the  last  influence,  on  the 
north-west,  of  the  rainless  climate  that  prevails  over  much  of 
South-West  Africa.  Along  the  line  of  the  Crystal  Mountains 
which  create  the  cataract  region  of  the  Lower  Congo  there  is, 
between  the  6th  and  the  14th  degrees  of  S.  Lat.,  an  annual 
rainfall  of  scarcely  less  than  an  average  55  inches.  Imme- 
diately north  of  the  Congo  the  amount  of  this  rainfall  steadily 
increases  in  the  direction  of  the  Equator,  and  over  the  greater 
part  of  French  Congo  and  of  the  Southern  Cameroons  the 
average  annual  supply  of  rain  can  scarcely  be-  less  than  80 
inches — in  some  districts  perhaps  100.  This  therefore  brings 
into  existence  the  dense  forests  of  French  Congo,  the  Gaboon, 
and  the  Cameroons  coast  belt,  and  those  of  the  Ja  and  Ngoko 
rivers.  East  of  the  Crystal  Mountains  and  south  of  the  3rd 
degree  of  S.  Lat.  the  rainfall  over  the  whole  of  the  Congo  basin 
ranges  between  a minimum  of  50  inches  and  a maximum  of  80 
or  90.  The  heaviest  rainfall  in  the  southern  half  of  the  Congo 
basin  is  probably  between  the  5th  and  6th  parallels  of  S.  Lat., 

892 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES  893 

in  the  densely  forested  regions  between  the  Kasai,  Sankuru, 
Lomami,  and  Tanganyika.  At  the  south  end  of  Tanganyika 
the  annual  rainfall  is  about  50  to  60  inches,  and  this  is  no 
doubt  the  characteristic  of  the  region  of  the  Nyasa-Tan- 
ganyika  plateau  and  the  basins  of  Bangweulu  and  Mweru 
and  the  Zambezi-Congo  water-parting.  The  rainfall  of  the 
Albertine  Rift  valley  between  the  north  end  of  Tanganyika 
and  the  vicinity  of  the  south  end  of  Lake  Albert  Nyanza  is 
about  70  inches  per  annum,  rising  to  higher  figures  on  the 
slopes  of  Ruwenzori,  of  the  Mfumbiro  volcanoes,  and  of  the 
Bukonjo  and  Ituri  highlands  that  border  this  rift  valley  on 
the  west.  The  rainfall  of  parts  of  Ruwenzori  must  be  nearly 
120  inches  per  annum.  This  is  not  much  in  excess  of  the 
amount  of  rain  annually  bestowed  on  the  vast  forests  of 
the  Aruwimi  basin,  and  on  the  belt  of  forest  which  with  some 
interruptions  extends  from  the  Aruwimi  across  the  northern 
tributaries  of  the  Congo  to  the  lower  Mubangi,  and  thence  to 
the  Sanga  River  and  the  mountainous  region  of  French 
Congo. 

The  upper  W ele  is  almost  the  northern  boundary  of  the  very 
rainy  region,  and  this  river  as  it  flows  westwards  after  the  con- 
fluence of  the  Mbomu  under  the  conventional  name  of  Mubangi 
enters  a drier  region.  Between  the  Grenfell  Falls  on  the  west 
and  the  confluence  of  the  Mbomu  on  the  east  the  rainfall  over 
the  central  basin  of  the  Mubangi  is  probably  not  more  than 
50  inches  annually.  This  amount  diminishes  gradually  north- 
wards in  the  basin  of  the  Shari,  till  in  the  region  south  of  Lake 
Chad  the  annual  rainfall  scarcely  reaches  to  30  inches. 

Nearly  all  the  Congo  basin  [except  the  extreme  north]  is 
subject  to  heavy  mists — fogs,  they  might  better  be  called — 
during  the  dry  season.  These  are  the  “ cachimbo  ” of  the 
Portuguese  colonies.  They  are  a marked  feature  on  the  Upper 
Congo,  and  sometimes  delay  navigation  very  considerably, 
as  they  may  last  a whole  day.  Ordinarily  the  mist  rises 
from  the  water  (which  is  warmer  than  the  air)  at  a little  before 
dawn  and  dissipates  in  the  bright  sunshine  of  the  forenoon 
(vide  p.  192). 

It  will  be  seen  from  this  rough  estimate  that,  in  comparison  to 
its  area,  the  Congo  basin  is  the  most  heavily  watered  continuous 
extent  of  tropical  Africa.  It  is  perhaps  also  that  of  the  greatest 
average  heat.  On  the  north-west,  north-east,  east,  south,  and 
south-west  it  is  surrounded  by  ranges  of  hills  and  mountains 
which  in  many  different  points  rise  into  regions  of  bracing  and 
temperate  climate,  actually  healthy  in  a few  spots  for  European 


894  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

settlement.  But  for  the  most  part  the  Congo  basin  below  an 
average  altitude  of  1,500  feet  is  always  hot,  moist,  and  de- 
pressing. As  far  north  as  30  S.  Lat.  the  year  is  divided  pretty 
equally  into  rainy  and  dry  seasons,  the  rainy  season  being 
between  the  months  of  October  and  April.  Between  30  S.  Lat. 
and  30  N.  Lat.  the  climate  is  Equatorial,  rain  may  occur  in  any 
month  of  the  year,  but  the  principal  rainfall  occurs  between 
April  and  July,  September  and  January.  North  of  this  Equa- 
torial limit  the  rainy  season  is  between  April  and  October, 
with  a break  during  August.  The  dry  seasons  are  coinci- 
dent with  the  lowest  temperatures  of  the  year,  but  also  generally 
with  the  greatest  extremes  in  the  way  of  heat.  Except  on 
high  mountains  above  3,500  feet  the  thermometer  in  the  Congo 
basin  very  seldom  descends  below  6o°  and  rarely  below  70°, 
while  it  may  go  up  to  such  figures  as  109°  and  even  1120  (in 
the  shade)  in  the  periods  of  relative  drought.  Of  course 
during  the  times  that  the  rains  are  falling  the  temperature  is 
more  equable,  ranging  generally  between  750  at  night  and  85° 
in  the  afternoon. 

The  beginning  and  end  of  each  rainy  season  is  heralded  by 
frightful  tornadoes  or  thunderstorms,  referred  to  frequently  in 
Grenfells  experiences.  Except  when  one  of  these  disturbances 
of  the  atmosphere  occurs,  winds  are  not  so  violent  in  these 
regions  of  Central  Africa  as  they  are  in  the  more  open 
country  north,  south,  or  east.  The  course  of  the  wind  south 
of  the  Equator  is  generally  from  south-west  to  north-east 
during  the  ‘‘winter”  or  dry  season,  and  from  north  or  north- 
east to  south-west  at  the  time  of  the  rains.  North  of  the 
Equator  the  directions  are  of  course  reversed  according  to 
the  season. 

The  Petrology  of  the  Congo  basin  may  be  thus  summed 
up  : The  surface  rocks  over  nearly  all  the  enormous  inner 
basin  of  the  Congo  below  1,500  feet  [the  site  of  the  former 
fresh-water  sea]  are  of  sandstone  and  conglomerate.  Over  this 
of  course,  in  parts  of  the  centre,  is  recent  alluvium.  Directly 
the  land  on  the  north  rises  above  an  altitude  of  1,300  feet  the 
Primary  rocks  push  through  or  rise  above  the  conglomerate 
and  the  sandstone,  and  we  have  formations  of  granite,  gneiss, 
quartz,  diabase,  micaceous  schists,  and  quartzite,  interspersed  on 
the  surface  with  much  ferruginous  rock  and  red  laterite.  These 
also  compose  in  the  main  the  ridges  known  as  the  Crystal  Moun- 
tains which  border  the  Congo  basin  on  the  west,  and  through 
which  the  main  Congo  has  pierced  its  way.  to  the  sea.  But  in 
these  coast  ranges  of  carved  plateau  there  is  a certain  admixture 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


895 

of  limestone,  especially  within  the  limits  of  the  Congo  basin.1  On 
the  south  the  older  formations  reappear  from  under  the  over- 
lying  sandstone  of  the  central  basin  as  soon  as  the  land  rises 
(somewhat  abruptly)  from  an  altitude  of  about  1,500  feet  to  the 
Lunda  plateau,  the  Wauters  range,  the  Samba  and  Mitumba 
mountains.  Here  are  found  the  conglomerates,  schists,  quartz, 
gneiss,  and  granite  of  the  west  and  north.  The  sandstone  of 
the  central  lake  basin  extends  up  the  valley  of  the  Lukuga 
towards  Tanganyika,  flanked  by  granite  ranges  to  the  north 
and  south. 

The  formation  of  Ruwenzori  is  Archaean,  pushing  up  through 
tilted  schists  of  the  Albertine  Rift  valley.  But  here  and  there 
in  this  great  trough  with  its  easterly  bifurcation  (Lake  Dweru) 
are  evidences  of  considerable  volcanic  activity,  past  and  present, 
and  part  of  this  rift  valley  about  Lake  Kivu  has  been  absolutely 
devastated  by  a recent  flow  of  lava.  There  are  crater  lakes  all 
along  the  slopes  of  Ruwenzori  and  in  the  adjacent  country  of 
Ankole,  and  the  Mfumbiro  (Virunga)  volcanoes  are  still  smoking. 
There  are  also  signs  of  volcanic  activity  at  the  south-west  end 
of  Tanganyika  and  at  the  north  end  of  Lake  Nyasa.  It  is 
asserted,  however,  that  elsewhere  in  the  Congo  basin  there  is 
absolutely  no  trace  of  Plutonic  rocks.  In  most  of  the  upland 
regions  between  2,000  and  3,000  feet  in  altitude,  the  granite,  no 
longer  overlaid  by  sandstone,  has  been  worn  and  weathered 
into  laterite  and  the  familiar  red  clay  which  covers  so  much  of 
Central  Africa. 

So  far  minerals  of  value  have  only  been  found  in  the  border 
regions  of  the  Congo  basin,  in  the  Primary  formations.  Copper 
has  long  been  known  to  exist  in  the  Crystal  Mountains  between 
Angola  on  the  south  and  the  Gaboon  on  the  north.  It  is  also 

o 

found  in  the  Primary  rocks  that  border  the  Mubangi  and  the 
north-east  of  the  Congo  basin.  It  reappears  again  in  the 
Bamanga  country  near  Ponthierville  (Congo-Lualaba),  in  the 
vicinity  of  Lake  Tanganyika,  and  most  of  all  in  Katanga. 
Presumably  the  copper  which  has  been  so  extensively  manu- 
factured by  the  Bantu  peoples  of  the  northern  Congo  has  been 
derived  by  them  in  the  form  of  ingots  from  the  regions  lying 
to  the  south-east,  south,  north-east,  or  north,  as  it  could  hardly 
have  been  obtained  from  the  sandstone  formations  within  the 
central  Congo  basin.  Gold  has  long  been  known  to  exist 
in  Katanga,  but  it  has  been  quite  recently  discovered  also 
at  Kilo,  in  the  hilly  region  round  the  northern  sources  of  the 
Ituri.  Iron  is  almost  everywhere  abundant.  As  yet  no  coal 
1 Vide  Grenfell’s  note  on  p.  188. 


896  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

has  been  encountered  in  the  sandstone  formations,  nor  have 
traces  of  petroleum  been  found.  In  the  Crystal  Mountains  of 
the  west  both  lead  and  silver  may  be  present. 

With  regard  to  the  Botany  of  the  Congo  the  areas  of  the 
great  forest  regions  have  already  been  defined,  but  to  save  the 
reader  the  trouble  of  reference  to  other  parts  of  the  book  it 
may  be  repeated  here  that  the  principal  areas  of  dense  forest 
within  the  limits  of  the  Congo  basin  are,  firstly,  the  Equatorial 
forest  belt,  which  (with  slight  interruptions  caused  by  the 
invasion  of  man)  extends  with  a peculiar  fauna,  and  to  some 
extent  a peculiar  flora,  right  across  the  northern  area  of  the 
Congo  basin,  from  the  Cameroons  and  Gaboon  coast  regions 
on  the  west  to  Uganda  on  the  east,  keeping  more  or  less  north 
or  east  of  the  main  course  of  the  Congo.  This  forest  belt 
further  extends  southwards  between  Tanganyika  and  the 
Lualaba-Congo  down  to  about  the  7th  parallel  of  S.  Lat. 
It  crosses  the  Lualaba-Congo  below  the  region  of  Stanley 
Falls,  and  curves  round  westward  across  the  Lomami  and  San- 
kuru  rivers  to  the  middle  Kasai. 

Within  this  forest  area  the  flora  is  peculiarly  West  African, 
most  of  the  plants  being  nearly  akin  to  those  found  in  the 
coast-lands  of  Guinea  and  in  the  regions  round  the  west,  north, 
and  north-east  coasts  of  the  Victoria  Nyanza.  Outside  this  area 
of  dense  forest,  to  the  south  of  the  western  Congo,  there  is  the 
botanical  sub-region  which  might  be  called  Angolan,  which  has 
certain  peculiar  characteristics  of  its  own,  and  includes  the 
basin  of  the  upper  Zambezi.  To  the  south  and  south-east  of 
the  great  forest  area  of  the  Congo  the  flora  is  nearly  identical  with 
that  of  British  Central  Africa  and  with  the  western  portion  of 
German  East  Africa  and  the  Mozambique  regions.1 

North  of  the  forest  belt  in  the  basin  of  the  upper  Mubangi 
the  flora  is  Sudanian,  nearly  identical  in  character  with  that  of 
Senegambia,  the  central  Niger  basin,  the  Bahr-al-Ghazal,  and 
South-Western  Ethiopia. 

Amongst  the  more  obvious  aspects  of  the  Congo  Flora 
the  first  place,  perhaps,  should  be  given  to  the  Palms,  for  their 
economic  importance  and  because  they  are  striking  features  in 
the  scenery. 

The  Coconut  Palm,  though  it  is  abundant  on  the  coast-line, 
penetrates  but  a short  distance  into  the  interior  of  Congoland, 
though  in  Angola  it  may  be  met  with  on  the  Kwanza  River 

1 This  flora  has  been  described  in  detail  by  Mr.  I.  Burkill  in  my  work  on  British 
Central  Africa , second  edition. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


897 

two  hundred  miles  from  the  sea.  It  is  of  course  a foreign 
introduction  due  to  the  Portuguese. 

On  the  sea-coast  of  the  Congo  estuary,  especially  in  the 
drier  regions  to  the  south  of  the  Congo  mouth,  there  is  the 
mop-like  Hyphcene  guineensis } This  Hyphaene  seldom  grows 
to  any  great  height : it  is  rather  a stunted  palm,  and  the 
petioles  of  its  fronds  are  not  so  long  as  those  of  a Borassus, 
and  consequently  do  not  present  such  a fan-shaped  aspect. 

In  the  Cataract  region  of  the  western  Congo  palms  are 
relatively  scarce,  and  are  chiefly  represented  by  a wild  date 
(?  Phoenix  reclinato 2)  and  by  the  Oil  Palm,  which  last  does  not 
seem  here  to  grow  naturally,  and  no  doubt  owes  its  introduction 
to  the  hand  of  man. 

As  soon  as  the  traveller  reaches  Stanley  Pool  from  the 
Lower  Congo  he  notices  a marked  difference  in  the  general  aspect 
of  the  vegetation,  especially  towards  the  eastern  end  of  Stanley 
Pool.  He  feels  that  he  is  here  entering  in  reality  the  great  forest 
belt  of  Equatorial  Africa,  and  here  too  the  landscape  is  greatly 
embellished  on  the  flats  along  the  waterside  by  the  magnificent 
Borassus  palms — one  of  the  most  beautiful  objects  in  the 
vegetable  world.  These  have  been  sufficiently  illustrated  in 
the  earlier  pages  of  this  book.  Their  range  extends  pretty 
widely  over  all  the  inner  basin  of  the  Congo  up  to  an  altitude 
of  1,500  feet,  but  they  are  seldom  or  never  seen  above  that 
altitude,  and  are  practically  absent  from  all  the  hilly  or  moun- 
tainous regions.  On  the  Nile  side  of  the  frontier,  in  Equa- 
torial Africa,  the  Borassus  palm  makes  its  appearance  in  the 
Toro  countries  as  high  as  2,500  feet,  but  these  palms  do  not 
become  numerous  until  the  lower  level  of  the  mountain  Nile  is 
reached. 

The  Borassus  palms  of  the  Congo  basin  are  particularly 
remarkable  for  the  globular  swelling  of  the  stem.  This,  and 
the  fact  that  their  fruit  seemed  to  the  present  writer  (twenty- 
five  years  ago)  to  be  smaller  and  its  outer  covering  to  be  of  a 
more  reddish-brown  than  the  fruits  of  the  Borassus  in  East 
Africa,  led  him  wrongly  to  describe  the  Borassus  palm  of  the 
central  Congo  basin  as  Hyphcene  ventricosa.  He  identified  it 
with  the  tall  Hyphaene  palm,  also  developing  a bulge  in  the 
stem,  which  was  discovered  by  Sir  John  Kirk  on  the  central 
Zambezi.  But  in  all  probability  there  is  no  Hyphaene  palm 

1 There  is  an  illustration  of  this  palm  on  p.  io  of  the  present  writer’s  The  River 
Congo , Sampson  Low. 

2 Usually  all  the  wild  date  palms  of  tropical  Africa  are  referred  to  the  species 
Phoenix  reclinata  (of  which  spinosa  is  a synonym),  but  according  to  Chevalier  there 
is  in  the  extreme  north  of  the  Congo  basin  another  distinct  species,  P.  dybovuskii. 

II. 2 D 


S98  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

indigenous  to  the  inner  basin  of  the  Congo,  and  all  the  Fan 
Palms  which  are  so  marked  a feature  in  the  scenery  of  this 
region  are  the  ordinary  Borassus  flabellifer  cethiopum , or  else  a 
variety  of  the  same  species  peculiar  to  the  Congo  basin.  The 
subject  is  one  that  is  worthy  of  examination  by  botanists,  as 
undoubtedly  the  fruits  of  this  Borassus  are  smaller  than  they 
are  in  East  Africa.  Moreover,  the  outer  covering  of  the  fruit 
is  almost  of  an  edible  nature,  somethingf  like  the  “ grinoferbread  ” 
that  surrounds  the  fruits  of  the  Hyphaene  in  East  Africa. 
Elephants,  and  even  negroes,  chew  the  outer  rind  of  the 
Borassus  fruits  on  the  Congo.  Grenfell  declares  that  this 
Borassus  furnishes  a piassava  fibre  only  slightly  inferior  to  that 
of  the  Raphia.  The  Raphia  vinifera  (the  wine  or  “bamboo” 
palm)  grows  luxuriantly  along  the  swampy  shores  of  the 
estuarine  Congo,  and  probably  penetrates  through  the  Cataract 
region  into  the  southern  basin  of  the  Congo,  perhaps  thence 
across  the  Zambezi  watershed  into  Nyasaland. 

But  the  magnificent  Raphia  palms  of  Western  Africa  have 
been  as  yet  imperfectly  studied  and  insufficiently  classified. 
The  specimens  of  Raphia  despatched  by  the  present  writer,  by 
Sir  John  Kirk,  and  Mr.  Buchanan  from  the  Shire  Highlands 
were  named  Raphia  vinifera , but  at  a period  when  the  classi- 
fication of  the  palms  was  not  as  closely  studied  as  it  is  now. 
The  present  writer  has  seen  a great  deal  of  the  true  Raphia 
vinifera  of  the  West  African  coast-lands,  and  is  doubtful 
whether  it  is  the  same  species  as  that  which  grows  (often  to  a 
magnificent  height)  in  the  more  mountainous  regions  of  South- 
Central  Africa.  The  colour  of  the  fronds  in  the  one  case 
(R.  vinifera ) is  usually  a bright  light  green,  whereas  the  colour 
of  the  Raphia  of  British  Central  Africa  is  a bluish,  glaucous 
green,  and  the  altitude  of  this  palm  seems  to  be  much  greater. 

The  Raphia  palms  of  the  inner  Congo  basin  consist  of 
at  least  five  species,  besides  the  Raphia  vinifera  of  the  coast- 
lands.  These  are  Raphia  gentiliana , R.  laurentii,  R.  sese, 
R.  monbuttorum , and  R.  textilis.  Two  others  (if  they  are  not 
synonyms  of  any  already  mentioned)  may  also  enter  the 
Congo  basin  : R.  hookeri  and  R.  longiflora  of  the  Cameroons 
and  Gaboon.  The  Raphias  are  widely  distributed  over 
tropical  Africa,  and  are  the  genus  of  palm  which  gives  the 
“piassava”  fibre  of  Liberia.  All  the  species  of  this  beautiful 
genus  are  of  remarkable  use  to  the  natives,  as  the  sap  of  the 
Raphia  provides  them  with  a sweet  and  (if  fermented)  in- 
toxicating drink,  while  from  the  fibre,  bast,  and  rind  of  its 
fronds  and  stem  they  can  make  cloth  (by  felting,  weaving,  and 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES  899 

plaiting),  string,  fishing-lines,  brooms,  fly-whisks,  bow-strings, 
and  laths  for  building.1 

The  preparation  of  Raphia  bast-fibre  for  weaving  is  as 
follows  : — 

Young  leaves,  which  still  have  a light  green  colour  and 
have  not  yet  spread,  must  be  used  ; about  two  inches  from  the 
pointed  extremity  a slight  incision  is  made  by  the  natives 
which  cuts  through  the  soft  part  of  the  leaves,  but  leaves  the 
tougher  section  intact ; this  is  now  pulled  down  with  a quick 
stroke  ; then  it  is  hung  up  to  dry  (vide  p.  593). 

The  fronds  of  Raphia  sese  of  Northern  Equatorial  Congo 
land  are  much  used  for  thatching,  the  petioles  being  plaited  for 
that  purpose  by  the  natives  ( vide  illustration,  p.  729). 

According  to  Grenfell  (9th  of  January  1893),  the  Raphia 
(laurentii  f),  which  is  common  everywhere  in  the  south-central 
part  of  the  Congo  basin,  is  known  in  the  Lunda  states  as 
hipandi , and  its  fruit  as  mpandi,  which  last  he  declares  to  be 
edible,  and  much  liked  by  the  negroes.  This  is  curious  if  true, 
as  the  hard  brown  nut  (a  little  like  a stunted  fir-cone  in  appear- 
ance) does  not  look  suited  for  food.  The  nut  is  so  extremely 
hard  that  it  often  takes  a year  to  germinate  (this  from  my  own 
experience,  for  I have  planted  these  palm  nuts  in  Central  Africa 
and  waited  for  them  to  grow).  The  range  of  the  Raphia 
laurentii  seems  to  extend  over  the  more  Equatorial  part  of  the 
Congo  basin  south  of  the  main  Congo.  Capello  and  Ivens 
noticed  a Raphia  very  much  like  R.  laurentii  to  be  limited  in 
its  southward  range  by  the  8th  degree  of  S.  Lat.  In  this 
direction  it  is  probably  succeeded  by  R.  textilis  or  R.  rujjia. 


1 Raphia  sap  or  “ palm  wine,”  known  in  Central  and  Western  Congoland  under 
the  name  of  malafu-matombe  (to  distinguish  it  from  the  wine  obtained  from  the  Elceis, 
which  is  called  malafu-masamba)  is  sweeter  and  more  limpid  than  the  sap  of  the  oil 
palm.  It  is  obtained  by  boring  a hole  in  the  centre  of  the  palm  tree,  to  which  is 
affixed  a gourd.  The  natives  use  the  stems  or  midribs  of  the  fronds  to  make  house 
partitions,  traps  for  game,  and  nets  for  fish.  The  somewhat  concave  inner  side  of 
this  lengthy  midrib  (sometimes  twenty-five  to  thirty  feet  long)  makes  its  transverse 
section  very  similar  to  a tile,  and  (as  already  mentioned  in  chapter  xxvi.)  it  is  much 
used  for  roofing  along  the  northern  Congo.  These  hollowed  midribs  are  there  called 
Ndele.  They  will  often  remain  watertight  and  intact  for  five  years.  The  petioles  of 
the  fronds  supply  a thatching  for  the  roofs  of  small  houses.  The  thin  midribs  of 
young  branches  serve  as  fences,  bound  together  by  bush-rope  in  a manner  which  pro- 
duces very  artistic  patterns.  Strips  or  laths  of  bark  of  all  lengths  are  procurable, 
smooth  as  polished  marble  and  of  every  thickness,  for  the  Raphia  midrib  (stalk)  splits 
off  like  matchwood.  The  appearance  of  the  bast  after  it  has  been  prepared  for  weaving 
or  plaiting  is  illustrated  or  described  on  pp.  593  and  809. 

In  the  matter  of  porterage,  the  Raphia  palm  is  also  of  immense  service.  When 
a burden  is  too  heavy  for  one  man  alone,  say,  exceeding  eighty  or  ninety  pounds,  two 
carriers  suspend  it  from  the  middle  of  a long  pole,  the  ends  of  which  can  be  carried 
on  men’s  heads.  This  pole,  which  needs  to  be  long,  light,  and  solid,  is  again  sup- 
plied by  the  midrib  of  the  giant  Raphia  palm. 


9oo  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Grenfell  states  that  the  kernel  of  this  lupandi  Raphia  yields  an 
oil  not  very  dissimilar  to  that  of  Elceis.  It  is  excellent  for 
lighting*  purposes  and  as  machine  oil,  but  is  less  copiously  sup- 
plied by  the  nuts  than  is  the  case  with  the  oil  palm. 

The  natives  also  eat  the  pulp  which  grows  round  the  nut 
after  removing  the  hard,  brittle,  and  glistening  shell.  This 
operation  is  performed  by  lightly  roasting  the  fruit  in  burning 
ashes.  The  Raphia  laiwentii  is  only  found  in  water.  It  is  the 
true  water* palm,  and  is  of  enormous  size,  the  midribs  being 
frequently  fifty  feet  long.  On  the  trunk  are  found  long  vege- 
table needles,  black,  glistening,  cylindrical,  flexible,  and  harm- 
less, reaching  two  feet  in  length.  Bound  in  a bundle,  they 
make  excellent  and  efficacious  fly-whisks. 

Raphia  monbuttorum  would  seem  to  extend  from  the  western 
shores  of  the  Victoria  Nyanza  across  to  the  north-eastern  bend 
of  the  Congo  and  to  northern  Tanganyika.  The  tall  Raphia 
on  the  southern  limits  of  the  Congo  basin  is  probably  an  un- 
described species1  which  extends  its  range  into  Nyasaland.  It 
is  not  unlikely  that  Raphia  hookeri  and  R.  longiflora — both  of 
them  very  tall  Raphias  of  the  Cameroons  and  Gaboon — may 
be  found  as  far  to  the  east  as  the  basin  of  the  Sanga  River. 

The  Oil  Palm  [Elms)  is  found  nearly  all  over  the  Congo 
basin,  except  in  the  very  marshy  tracts,  in  some  of  the  stony 
country  of  the  Cataract  region,  or  the  districts  (mostly  moun- 
tainous) north  of  the  8th  parallel  of  S.  Lat.2  In  the  Congo 
basin  the  oil  palm  is  not  met  with  at  altitudes  above  2,500 
feet.  Its  range  up  the  Mubangi  River  appears  to  be  checked 
somewhere  about  the  4th  degree  of  N.  Lat.,  and  it  is  absent 
from  much  of  the  middle  course  of  the  Mubangi,  only  appear- 
ing again  in  abundance  in  the  region  where  that  river  goes  by 
the  name  of  Wele.  In  the  Makuta  and  Tumba  Mani  districts 

1 There  is  a fine  photographic  study  (by  Mr.  Frank  Melland)  of  the  Raphia 
palm  of  South-Central  Africa — Congo-Zambezi  water-parting — on  p.  257  of  the  pre- 
sent writer’s  work  The  Nile  Quest . 

2 This  degree  of  latitude  does  not,  however,  limit  the  range  of  the  oil  palm  in 
Africa,  for  it  extends,  with  many  gaps  in  its  distribution,  as  far  south  as  the  nth 
parallel  in  Nyasaland.  Here  its  range  is  limited  to  the  coast-lands  along  the  west 
and  north  coasts  of  Lake  Nyasa,  where  it  is  found  in  rather  a dwarfed  form.  In  the 
eastern  part  of  the  Congo  basin  it  extends  freely  to  the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika  and 
(no  doubt  by  human  agency)  to  a few  places  on  the  east  shore  of  that  lake.  Curiously 
enough,  its  range  in  the  direction  of  Uganda  appears  to  be  absolutely  stopped  by  the 
limits  of  the  Congo  Forest.  It  just  reaches  to  the  west  bank  of  the  lower  Semliki. 
On  the  north-east  it  extends  well  into  the  Bahr-al-Ghazal  region  and  to  the  vicinity  of 
the  mountain  Nile.  Sir  John  Kirk  discovered  it  growing  on  the  islands  of  Zanzibar 
and  Pemba,  a very  remarkable  fact,  as  it  is  apparently  nowhere  indigenous  to  German 
or  British  East  Africa.  It  is  just  possible  the  oil  palm  is  more  nearly  related  to  the 
cocoanut  than  to  the  other  palms  of  Africa,  and  as  the  cocoanut  is  indigenous  to  the 
islands  and  coasts  of  the  Indian  Ocean  and  the  Pacific,  the  oil  palm  may  have 
originated  on  the  eastern  side  of  Africa  and  gradually  migrated  to  the  west. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


901 


to  the  south-east  of  the  cataract  Congo,  Grenfell  states  that 
“great  quantities  of  magnificent  oil  palms  are  felled  for  the 
sake  of  the  wine  they  yield — a most  wasteful  and  unnecessary 
procedure,  for  the  wine,  if  it  must  be  collected,  can  be  obtained 
without  destroying  the  tree  if  the  natives  will  but  climb  for  it.” 
He  estimates  that  unless  this  procedure  is  checked  the  oil 
palm  will  be  practically  exterminated  in  the  northern  part  of 
Portuguese  Congo. 

The  Calamus  secundiflorzis  or  Climbing  Palm  of  Grenfell  is 
now  separated  from  the  true  Calamus  palms  of  Upper  Guinea, 
as  the  genus  Ancistrophyllum.  A.  secundiflorum  is  found 
nearly  all  over  the  Congo  basin,  and  is  one  of  the  most  char- 
acteristic trees  of  that  region  wherever  there  is  any  forest.  It 
is  scarce,  almost  absent,  in  the  narrow  region  of  the  Congo 
cataracts,  but  on  the  lower  river,  near  the  sea,  and  directly 
one  arrives  at  Stanley  Pool,  this  graceful  creeper  is  in  every 
clump  of  luxuriant  forest,  ascending  by  means  of  its  hooked, 
leafless  stems  and  hooked  fronds  till  it  reaches  above  the  tallest 
trees  and  can  wave  its  crest  in  the  sunlight.  The  foliage  is 
always  of  a vivid  grass-green.  The  small  berry-like  fruits  are 
orange-coloured  when  ripe  (vide  p.  142).  Grenfell  found  this 
palm  in  the  southern  part  of  the  Congo  basin,  growing  at  an 
altitude  of  nearly  two  thousand  feet  above  sea-level,  though  he 
thinks  in  this  case  it  was  a different  genus  or  species,  with 
spines  or  hooks  much  darker  in  tint.1 

Another  striking  object  in  waterside  vegetation  of  the 
inner  Congo  basin  is  the  Pandanus  or  Screwpine,  described 
by  Grenfell  as  Pandanus  odoratus.  But  this  is  probably  a 
mistake.  The  species  of  Pandanus  indigenous  to  the  inner 
basin  of  the  Congo  (away  from  the  sea-coast)  have  not  as  yet 
been  properly  examined  and  named.  Those  found  in  the 
western  region  of  the  Congo  are  probably  P.  candelabrum  and 
P . camerunensis,  possibly  P.  teuszii.  The  present  writer  has, 
however,  seen  a Pandanus  growing  abundantly  in  the  Ituri 
forests  of  the  north-eastern  Congo  basin  which  would  seem  to 
be  a distinct  and  undescribed  species. 

The  handsome  Papyrus  rush  is  found  nearly  everywhere  in 
the  Congo  area  except  (apparently)  above  two  thousand  feet 
altitude  in  the  south  or  north.  This  disappearance  of  the 
papyrus  from  the  more  elevated  regions  of  the  Congo  water- 
shed (noted  by  von  Wissmann,  Wolf,  Grenfell,  FYobenius,  and 
the  present  writer)  may  be  due  to  a want  of  detailed  observa- 

1 There  would  seem  to  be  a true  Calamus  palm  after  all  in  the  Congo  basin — 
C.  laurentii.  This  may  be  the  type  of  climbing  palm  referred  to  by  Grenfell. 


902  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

tion.  Otherwise  it  is  a curious  feature  in  the  distribution  of 
this  celebrated  Cyperns,  because  in  Equatorial  East  Africa  it  is 
found  growing  at  altitudes  of  six  thousand  feet  above  sea-level, 
apparently  not  differing  materially  from  the  papyrus  of  the 
lower  levels.  But  it  would  seem  to  be  an  Africo- Asiatic 
species  which  has  penetrated  to  Sicily,  Lower  Egypt,  and 
Syria,  but  has  not  yet  reached  all  parts  of  West  Africa. 

One  hears  and  reads  a good  deal  of  Bamboos  in  connection 
with  building  operations  on  the  Congo,  but  for  the  most  part 
this  term  is  really  applied  to  the  stems  of  the  Raphia  vinifera 
palm  fronds.  Bamboos  are  not  so  prominent  in  the  Congo 
landscapes  as  they  are  in  British  Central  Africa,  above  an  alti- 
tude of  2,500  feet.  Examples  of  the  Bamboo  family  of  the 
Grass  order  are,  however,  present  in  the  Congo  flora,  though 
they  are  not  always  noticeable  by  persons  without  a botanical 
eye.  Round  about  Stanley  Pool,  especially  on  the  north  coast, 
there  is  an  indigenous  bamboo,  a dwarf  variety  of  herbaceous 
growth — Atractocarpa  olyrcefownis.  In  the  mountainous  regions 
of  the  south  there  are  also  in  all  probability  species  of  Arundi- 
naria , a small,  low-growing  bamboo,  sometimes  of  most  graceful 
appearance,  which  is  also  found  on  the  mountains  of  British 
Central  Africa.1 

The  tall  common  bamboo  of  that  last-named  region,  which 
is  not  a prominent  object  until  an  altitude  of  more  than  2,500 
feet  is  reached,  is  apparently  the  widespread  Oxytenanthera 
abyssinica . I believe  the  range  of  this  genus — Oxytenanthera 
— is  extremely  extended  over  Africa  south  of  the  Sahara  and 
Nubian  deserts.  It  grows,  in  the  species  abyssinica , on  the 
mountains  near  Suakin,  and  on  all  the  lower  ranges  of  Abys- 
sinia from  an  altitude  of  about  2,500  feet  up  to  8,000  feet.  It 
reappears  again  in  the  eastern  Equatorial  region,  but  scarcely 
below  an  altitude  of  9,000  feet.  South  of  the  Equator,  at  an 
ever  lower  level  as  the  figures  of  the  latitude  increase,  it  is 
present  right  away  down  to  Natal.  On  the  highlands  of 
southern  Tanganyika  it  may  appear  at  5,000  feet.  On  the  hills 
that  border  the  lower  Zambezi  it  will  grow  as  low  as  700  feet, 
and  in  Natal  is  found  almost  at  sea-level.  But  an  Oxyten- 
anthera has  been  found  by  Chevalier  growing  at  an  altitude  of 
no  greater  than  1,500  feet  on  the  low  water-parting  that  separates 
the  basins  of  the  Mubangi  and  Shari,  in  the  far  north  of  the 
Congo  region.  An  Oxytenanthera  has  also  been  recorded  by  the 
present  writer  from  the  coast-lands  and  interior  of  Liberia,  and 

1 I am  indebted  for  this  and  much  other  botanical  information  to  Col.  D.  Prain 
and  Dr.  Otto  Stapf,  of  Kew  Gardens. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


903 


the  same  bamboo  is  an  obvious  feature  in  the  landscapes  of  the 
eastern  part  of  Sierra  Leone  at  no  great  height  above  sea-level. 
It  is  also,  no  doubt,  the  magnificent  bamboo  that  renders,  or 
used  to  render,  the  environs  of  Old  Calabar  so  picturesque. 
This  Oxytenanthera  further  occurs  on  the  coast-lands  of  the 
Cameroons  and  of  the  Luango  coast  north  of  the  Congo  estuary. 
The  bamboos  of  Old  Calabar  and  those  of  the  actual  township 
of  Freetown,  Sierra  Leone,1  have  been  attributed  to  an  intro- 
duction from  the  West  Indies,  though  I do  not  think  their 


479.  A BAMBOO  (OXYTENANTHERA)  AT  WATHEN  STATION,  CATARACT  REGION 


identity  with  any  West  Indian  species  has  been  proved  by 
botanists.  But  it  is  hardly  credible  that  the  magnificent  coast 
bamboos  to  be  met  with  at  intervals  all  along  the  Guinea 
littoral  from  Sierra  Leone  to  the  vicinity  of  the  Congo  can  all 
owe  their  introduction  to  missionary  enterprise.  They  are 
certainly  species  of  Oxytenanthera , but  sufficient  material  is  not 
yet  to  hand  to  determine  their  identity  or  otherwise  with  the 
mountain  Oxytenanthera  of  the  eastern  half  of  Africa.  The 
accompanying  photograph  shows  the  growth  after  a few  years 

1 Where  they  are  such  a beautiful  object  as  almost  to  make  it  worth  people’s  while 
to  travel  thither  by  steamer  to  see  them. 


9o4  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

of  an  Oxytenanthera  brought  by  the  late  Rev.  Holman  Bentley 
from  the  Luango  coast  and  planted  by  him  at  Underhill  and  at 
Wathen  stations,  in  the  Cataract  region.  Comber  and  Bentley 
brought  other  slips  of  this  coast  bamboo,  and  planted  them  near 
Leopoldville,  Stanley  Pool.  It  is  as  well  to  mention  this  fact, 
which  occurred  under  the  present  writer’s  observation,  because 
twenty-five  years  ago  there  were  no  tall  bamboos  whatever 
growing  round  Stanley  Pool,  and  those  that  may  now  be  seen 
there  owe  their  introduction  to  the  Baptist  missionaries — not 
from  the  West  Indies  (as  has  been  asserted),  but  from  the 
indigenous  species  at  Luango.  The  spread  of  the  cultivation 
of  the  bamboo  is  a matter  of  some  importance  to  the  economics 
of  the  Congo,  as  the  stems  of  this  magnificent  grass  are  so 
exceedingly  useful. 

The  record  of  orchids  from  the  Congo  basin  is  poor  so  far 
in  number  of  species  as  compared  with  the  Cameroons  or  the 
Niger  delta.  On  the  Lower  Congo  the  Lissochilus giganteus 
(already  illustrated  in  this  book)  is  abundantly  met  with,  and 
makes  a magnificent  note  of  colour  amid  the  swamp  vegetation. 
In  the  interior  Congo  basin  two  other  forms  of  Lissochilus  have 
been  recorded  ( dilectus  and  linclleyanus).  Three  species  of 
Eulophia  are  met  with  also  in  the  interior.  This  type  of 
orchis  probably  grows  more  abundantly  on  the  plateaux  and 
uplands  than  in  the  central  basin  at  a low  level.  No  species  of 
Satyrium  has  as  yet  been  sent  to  Europe  from  the  Congo,  but 
as  the  present  writer  has  found  this  mountain  orchis  on  the 
highlands  along  the  eastern  verge  of  the  Congo  State,  it  is 
probable  that  a further  search  will  discover  other  species  of  it 
native  to  the  Congo  basin.  There  are  two  species  of  Habe- 
naria , but  as  yet  no  form  of  Disa.  As  regards  epiphytic 
orchids,  the  Congo  forests  are  well  supplied  in  species,  even  if  the 
number  of  recorded  genera  still  remains  small.  There  are  at 
least  ten  forms  of  Angrcecum  in  this  region,  the  flowrers 
being  mostly  white  or  creamy-white,  sometimes  with  green 
petals,  and  nearly  always  possessing  long  or  enormously  long 
nectaries.  There  are  seven  species  of  Polys/achya,  the  flowers 
of  which  are  small,  but  grow  in  large  sprays  or  clusters,  and 
are  often  of  exquisitely  beautiful  colours.  And  there  are  three 
species  of  Vanilla.  But  compared  with  the  list  of  Orchidece 
from  (for  example)  the  Uganda  Protectorate,  the  recorded  list 
from  the  Congo  is  disappointing. 

The  tree  trunks  in  the  great  forests  are  festooned  with  para- 
sitic aroids,  sometimes  of  much  beauty  in  their  foliage.  The 
most  remarkable  in  appearance  of  these  climbing  arums  is 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


905 

Rhektophyllum  congensis , with  enormous  leaves  that  are  pierced 
with  open  spaces  between  the  strong  veins.  Culcasia  (two 
species,  one  with  a white  spathe),  Cevcestis , and  the  elegant 
Nephthytis  (with  leaves  divided  into  three,  equal,  pointed  lobes) 
are  other  types  of  climbing  aroid.  In  the  swamps  of  the 
northern  and  western  Congo  the  tall  Cyrtosperma  arums,  with 
purple-blotched  spathes  and  erect  leaves  about  two  feet  long,  are 
notable  additions  to  the  landscape. 

A remarkable-looking  Cycad — Encephcilartos  lemarinel- 
lianus — similar  to,  if  not  identical  with,  the  Encephcilartos 
which  is  illustrated  in  my  book  on  the  Uganda  Protectorate — 
makes  its  appearance  along  many  of  the  smaller  streams  in  the 
north-eastern  and  perhaps  the  central  basin  of  the  Congo.  An 
allied  form — E.  septentrionalis — was  discovered  by  Chevalier 
on  the  M ubangi-Shari  water-parting. 

There  are  eleven  recorded  species  of  fig  growing  in  the 
Congo  basin,  but  the  list  does  not  include  the  oft-cited  Ficus 
urostigma , which  (according  to  Schweinfurth)  furnishes  the 
bast  that  is  felted  into  “bark  cloth.”  Neither  has  this  species 
as  yet  been  identified  in  Uganda,  the  country  above  all  others 
wherein  bark  cloth  was  brought  to  a great  development  as 
an  industry.  It  seems  likely  therefore  that  the  bast  required 
for  this  purpose  is  obtained  from  several  species  of  fig  tree  ; 
probably,  however,  not  those  of  parasitic  habit.  Ficus  cory- 
lifolia  and  F.  niamniamensis  may  be  examples  of  the  species 
in  North  Congoland  that  yield  this  bast,  the  use  of  which  as 
felted  cloth  has  been  of  such  universal  distribution  over  negro 
Africa. 

Amongst  tall  trees  remarkable  for  their  handsome  appear- 
ance and  the  beauty  of  their  foliage,  or  trees  and  shrubs  note- 
worthy for  the  brilliant  colour  of  their  inflorescence,  may  be 
remarked  four  species  of  Parinarium ,l  three  species  of  Albizzia , 
and  one  or  more  of  Prosopis  (gigantic  trees  of  the  Acacia 
group,  with  dense  velvety  foliage  of  an  emerald-green);  Daniella 
thurifera,  Afzelia  africana , two  kinds  of  Mimusops,  the  Erio- 
dendrons,  Dracaenas  ; 2 the  tall,  buttressed  Bombax  tree  with  its 
large  crimson  flowers  ; the  gouty  Baobab  ; the  Cczsalpinia  ( C . 

1 Lofty  trees  of  good  timber  and  dense  foliage,  belonging  to  the  Rose  family.  The 
somewhat  plum-like  blossoms  are  pinkish,  and  the  yellow,  mealy  fruits  are  eaten  by 
the  natives. 

2 An  arboreal  lily  with  aloe-like  foliage  of  glossy,  dark  green.  There  are  at  least 
ten  species  of  Dracana  indigenous  to  the  Congo,  and  some  of  them  grow  to  over  a 
hundred  feet  in  height.  The  blossom  is  usually  white,  and  like  that  of  the  agave  in 
appearance  ; so  much  s^o,  that  the  “agaves”  referred  to  by  Grenfell  in  his  journal  or 
his  photographs  are  really  indigenous  species  of  Dracccna  (the  agave  being  of  Ameri- 
can habitat). 


9o6  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

pulcherrima ')  with  its  magnificent  sprays  of  scarlet  blossoms  ; two 
species  of  Brilliantaisia  shrubs  displaying  blue  or  pink  flowers  ; 
four  species  of  Baphiap  Barterias  with  their  waxy-white,  camellia- 
like flowers;  the  Camoensias  (already  referred  to  on  p.  242); 2 
seven  kinds  of  Cassia , some  of  them — especially  C.  fistula — with 
fine  displays  of  yellow  flowers;  Berlinias  with  bunches  of  heavily 
scented  white  blossoms;  three  species  of  Cnestis , with  their  gorge- 
ous orange-  or  scarlet-velvet  seed-capsules;  fourteen  or  fifteen 
kinds  of  Combretump  one  wild  banana  ( Musa  laurentii ) ; five  or 
more  species  of  Musscenda  ; 4 five  species  of  Randia  and  two  of 
Gardenia — handsome  trees,  sometimes  with  very  remarkable 
white  or  red,  strongly  scented  flowers;  two  species  of  tall 
Spathodea  trees  (with  large  crimson  or  scarlet  blossoms — a 
splendid  spectacle  in  Congo  landscapes) ; the  lofty  Sterculia 
trees  ; four  species  of  Dalbergia  (some  of  which  furnish  good 
ebony) ; and,  in  the  north,  Diospyrus  mespiliformis , also  pro- 
ducing ebony.  There  are  at  least  six  species  of  Crinum — the 
“lilies”  alluded  to  so  often  by  writers  who  describe  Congo 
landscapes.  The  Crinum  is  really  an  Amaryllid \ but  its  flowers 
are  much  like  those  of  the  Lilium  candidum.  They  make  an 
exceedingly  beautiful  object  in  the  landscapes,  growing  as  they 
sometimes  do  in  large  numbers  over  some  moist  glade  or  river- 
side  flat.  The  back  of  the  petal  in  several  species  is  striped 

1 The  Baphias  furnish  the  camwood  and  redwood  formerly  much  used  in  African 
commerce,  but  now  almost  restricted  to  native  use.  The  nkula  or  red  dye  powder 
referred  to  so  much  in  this  book  is  derived  from  a species  of  Baphia , probably 
B.  acuminata  or  B.  congole?isis.  The  other  two  species  indigenous  to  the  Congo  are 
B.  laurentii  and  B.  spathacea.  Although  Baphia  nitida  is  said  to  exist  along  the 
course  of  the  Lower  Congo,  it  has  not  as  yet  been  recorded  from  the  inner  basin  of 
that  river. 

2 Two  species,  C.  maxima  and  C.  laurentii. 

3 The  Combretum  genus  ought  to  be  declared — publicly — worthy  of  the  gratitude 
of  humanity.  It  is  especially  noteworthy  in  West  Africa,  where  it  grows  in  shrubs 
like  huge  bouquets,  or  as  a creeper,  covered  during  the  flowering  season  with 
innumerable  sprays  of  crimson  or  scarlet  flowers.  The  winged  seed-vessels  are  a 
lovely  pink.  Other  climbing  Combretums  of  the  Congo  basin  develop  bracts  round 
the  flowers  which  are  pale  mauve  (like  Bougainvillea ) or  blush-pink.  Grenfell  refers 
frequently  to  these  colour  displays  in  the  Congo  springtime. 

4 The  Mussaendas  furnish  much  of  the  beauty  of  the  bush  and  forest  in  Western 
Equatorial  Africa.  They  usually  grow  as  shrubs  or  creepers,  and  either  develop  large 
white  or  scarlet  or  vivid  orange  flowers  in  clusters,  or  else  the  actual  corolla  of  the 
flower  remains  small,  but  one  of  the  sepals  grows  to  an  exaggerated  extent,  and 
becomes  like  a large  leaf  of  satiny  texture.  This  is  either  brilliantly  white — as  if  it 
were  cut  out  of  white  velvet — or  crimson-scarlet,  very  similar  to  the  Poinsettias.  The 
magnificent  displays  of  these  crimson  Mussaendas  (M.  erythrophylla ) in  the  forests  of 
Sierra  Leone,  Uganda,  and  the  north-east  of  the  Congo  basin  are  among  the 
most  splendid  effects  I have  ever  seen  in  tropical  vegetation.  Grenfell  refers  to 
them  repeatedly  in  connection  with  the  scenery  of  the  lower  Kwango.  The  Mus- 
scenda deburu  of  the  northern  Mubangi  produces  alongside  vivid  yellow  flowers, 
reddish  gooseberry-shaped  fruit  tasting  like  a gooseberry,  and  has  been  named 
the  ‘‘gooseberry  tree  of  the  Mubangi”  by  that  great  missionary  pioneer,  Pere 
Moreau. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


with  pink.  The  handsomest  Crinums  are  C.  scinderianum  and 
C.  giganteum  (according  to  Chevalier). 

The  vines  of  the  Congo  region  belong  to  the  genera  Am- 

o o o 

pelocissus  and  Cissus.  They  add  much  to  the  beauty  of  the 
river-banks  or  forest  glades  by  their  graceful  foliage,  but  their 
grapes  (often  brightly  coloured)  are  almost  uneatable.  Amongst 
other  picturesque  creeping  plants  or  bushes  are  the  Ipomoea 
convolvuluses.  One 
species  has  scarlet 
cup-shaped  flowers. 

The  Congo  re- 
gion  is  rich  in  ferns 
owing  to  the  moist- 
ness of  the  climate. 

In  the  regions  of 
the  west,  tree-ferns 
begin  to  make  their 
appearance  in  the 
scrub  at  altitudes 
exceeding  three 
thousand  feet. 

These  are  probably 
of  the  genus  Cya- 
thea.  They  are 
exceedingly  hand- 
some, and  (as  may 
be  seen  by  an  illus- 
tration of  my  own 
in  this  book)  grow 
to  a considerable 
height  in  the  tropi- 
cal forests  around 
the  Cameroons  480.  crinum  lilies,  zombo  plateau  (3000  ft.) 
Mountains.  They 

are  also  found  at  much  lower  levels  on  Princes  Island  in  the 
Gulf  of  Guinea. 

Six  species  of  bracken  grow  indifferently  at  sea-level  or  on 
the  uplands.  Even  the  common  bracken  of  England — Pteris 
aquilina — is  a member  of  the  Congo  flora,  together  with 
Osmunda  regalis  (now  nearly  exterminated  in  our  own  country) 
and  the  common  maidenhair  fern.  The  epiphytic  Platycerium 
or  Elephant’s  Ear  is  a picturesque  object  of  glaucous  green  as 
it  decorates  the  tall  trunks  of  forest  trees  with  its  numerous 
colonies  of  antler-shaped  fronds.  There  is  an  Ophioglossum  not 


908  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

unlike  that  which  grows  in  Jersey.  There  are  three  species  of  the 
magnificent  Davallia  fern,  and  about  twelve  species  of Asplenium ; 
ten  kinds  of  Nep  hr  odium , an  Oleandra,  seven  types  of  Polypody, 
and  two  species  of  the  beautiful  climbing  fern — Lygodium. 

A prominent  feature  in  the  bush  of  the  equatorial  and 
coastal  regions  is  the  climbing  or  creeping  Lycopodiums  and 
Selaginellas  (club-mosses).  The  fronds  of  these  are  some- 
times iridescent,  that  is  to  say,  the  pale  green  has  reflections 
of  blue  and  gold  and  mauve.  These  iridescent  climbing 

o o 


481.  CYATHEA  (?)  TREE-FERNS  OF  S.W.  CONGOLAND  (ALT.  3000  FT.  APPROXIMATELY) 

Lycopodiums  are  so  exceedingly  beautiful  that  I am  surprised 
they  have  not  been  hitherto  introduced  into  hot-house  cultivation. 

Amongst  useful  trees  or  plants  may  be  enumerated  the 
following: — Tobacco  is  found  in  two  cultivated  types:  Nico- 
tiana  tabacum  and  N.  rustica . There  are  five  indigenous 
species  of  indigo.  The  cotton  plant  of  American  types  and 
species  has  spread  over  a great  deal  of  the  Congo  basin,  but  the 
cotton  really  indigenous  to  tropical  Africa — Gossypium  puncta- 
tum — does  not  appear  to  have  been  recorded  from  the  Congo. 
There  are  seven  or  eight  indigenous  yams  i^Dioscorea ),  which 
fact  would  apparently  effectually  dispose  of  the  theory  that  the 
cultivated  yam  is  an  introduction  from  America.  It  would  seem 
to  be  the  other  way  about,  that  the  African  yams  were  intro- 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


909 


duced  by  negro  slaves  into  the  West  Indies.  There  are  at 
least  six  indigenous  forms  of  Cola , including  Cola  acuminata , 
which  furnishes  the  kola  nut  of  African  and  European  com- 
merce. The  Colocasia  or  coco  yam  (an  aroid),  known  to  the 
ancient  Egyptians,  is  also  indigenous  to  the  Congo.  The  lime 
tree  and  even  the  orange,  anciently  introduced  by  the  Portu- 
guese, have  spread  to  an  amazing  extent  over  the  Congo  basin, 
in  common  with  the  pineapple.  The  Coula  nut  (C.  edulis)  of 
the  West  African  coast-lands  is  represented  by  an  allied  species 


482.  TREE-FERNS  AT  KIBOKOLO,  ON  THE  ZOMBO  PLATEAU  (ALT.  30OO  FT.) 

— Coula  cabrcz — the  nuts  of  which  are  eaten  by  the  natives.  The 
much-talked-of  Nsafo  fruit,  so  favourite  an  article  in  the  dietary 
of  the  western  Congo,  is  possibly  Uapaca  heudelotii , (?)  closely 
allied  to  the  pleasant-tasting  U.  kirkii  of  Zambezia.  Three 
species  of  Vanilla  orchis  are  indigenous  to  the  Congo  forest  or 
have  been  introduced  by  missionaries,  and  one  or  more  of  these 
may  furnish  vanilla  beans  for  commerce.  There  are  six  species 
of  indigenous  pepper  trees  (Piper).  The  Copaifera  demeusei 
and  C.  mopane  seem  to  furnish  the  copal  gum  that  is  exported 
from  the  inner  Congo  basin.  An  excellent  potato-like  vege- 
table— the  fruit  (small  gourd)  of  a species  of  Cucumis — is  in- 
digenous to  North  Congoland  and  is  called  by  the  Banda  people 
Doropo.  According  to  Chevalier,  it  should  be  worth  cultivating. 


9io  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

Amongst  useful  plants  might  also  be  mentioned  the  bean 
Tephrosia  vogelii , the  pods  of  which  crushed  and  thrown  into 
the  water  stupefy  the  fish  so  that  they  can  be  caught  by  the 
hand.  Fish  thus  caught  are  quite  wholesome  for  eating. 

There  are  probably  ten  species  of  coffee  trees  indigenous  to 
the  Congo  basin — perhaps  even  eleven,  if  the  Giant  Coffee  ( Coffeo 
excelsa ) discovered  by  Chevalier  in  the  southern  basin  of  the 
Shari  extends  over  the  water-parting  into  the  Mubangi  countries. 

It  was  Grenfell  who  first  discovered  coffee  growing  along 
the  lower  course  of  the  Mubangi  and  of  the  Sanga,  and  he 
drew  attention  to  the  value  of  the  discovery  from  the  point  of 
view  of  European  requirements.  The  species  of  coffee  that  he 
discovered  was  not  in  any  way  used  by  the  natives,  who  at 
most  in  negro  Africa  take  notice  of  the  coffee  plant  for  the 
pleasant  sweet  pulp  that  surrounds  the  seed.  Grenfell’s  dis- 
covery was  probably  Coffea  congensis.  Indigenous  species  of 
coffee  are  probably  more  numerous  in  the  region  to  the  north 
and  east  of  the  main  Congo,  but  the  range  of  this  genus  in 
tropical  Africa  is  a good  deal  coincident  with  that  of  the  Equa- 
torial forest  regions  already  defined.  Consequently  it  is  not  sur- 
prising to  find  Coffea  arnoldiana  of  the  more  northern  basin  of 
the  Congo  developing  two  special  varieties  in  the  forests  of  the 
Sankuru  River  and  in  those  of  the  Kwilu- Kasai  region.  Perhaps 
the  basin  of  the  Aruwimi  is  the  richest  in  species  of  Coffea. 

The  wild  rubbers  of  the  Congo  were  thoroughly  investigated 
by  the  “ Emile  Laurent  Scientific  Mission  of  1903-1904,”  and 
the  results  have  been  admirably  illustrated  by  Dr.  E.  de  Wilde- 
man.1  To  this  work  and  to  that  of  M.  Auguste  Chevalier2 
must  be  referred  all  readers  desiring  special  knowledge  on  this 
subject.  But  it  might  be  of  general  interest  to  enumerate 
approximately  the  principal  rubber-producing  trees,  shrubs,  and 
lianas  of  the  Congo  State.  First  in  importance  comes  the 
rubber  tree  of  Lagos,  generally  described  in  works  published  by 
the  Belgians  under  its  Lagos  name  of  Ire.  This  is  the  Fun- 
tumia  elastica , the  range  of  which  is  now  known  to  extend  from 
Liberia  on  the  west  to  the  Uganda  Protectorate  in  the  east — 
right  across  the  Equatorial  forest  belt  of  Africa.  It  is  found 
southwards  in  the  Congo  basin  as  far  as  the  line  of  the  Kasai- 
Sankuru,  but  its  range  ceases  in  that  direction  as  soon  as  the 
relatively  abrupt  ascent  to  the  southern  plateaux  is  reached. 
There  are  two  other  species  of  Funtumia  (each,  no  doubt,  with 
several  local  varieties).  The  Funtumia  africana,  a tree  reaching 

1 Brussels  : Vanbuggenenhoudt,  1907. 

2 LAfrique  Centrale  Fran^aise.  Paris  : Challamel,  1908. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


911 

to  about  seventy-five  feet  in  height,  scarcely  seems  to  enter  the 
area  of  the  Congo  basin,  though  it  is  found  in  the  adjoining 
Cameroons  territory.  It  is  more  a tree  of  West  than  of  Central 
Africa.  The  Funtumia  latifolia , which  does  not  perhaps 
exceed  fifty  feet  in  height,  is  rather  more  a denizen  of  South- 
West  Africa,  being  found  in  Northern  Angola,  though  its  range 
extends  right  across  the  Congo  basin  to  the  Aruwimi  and  the 
upper  Wele.  The  latex  obtained  from  Funtumia  latifolia  is 
described  as  sticky,  without  elasticity,  and  much  too  resinous  to 
be  utilized  by  existing  methods  of  preparation.  Consequently 
it  is  the  Funtumia  elastica  which  occupies  the  attention  of  the 
Congo  State  authorities  more  than  any  other  species  of  rubber- 
producing  tree  or  plant,  and  in  all  directions  efforts  are  being 
made  to  sow  and  rear  this  valuable  rubber  tree.  It  has  been 
estimated  that  in  French  Congo,  Funtumia  trees  when  they 
are  between  four  and  five  years  old  can  be  bled  ten  times  in 
the  year,  and  will  then  yield  a totality  of  a pound  and  a quarter 
of  rubber  [for  the  ten  bleedings].1 

Next  perhaps  in  importance  for  their  rubber-producing  quali- 
ties come  the  Landolphias.  Of  these  there  are  no  less  than  twelve 
recorded  species.2  Besides  those  that  have  been  identified, 
there  are  probably  many  other  species  of  this  genus  awaiting 
identification.  So  far,  at  least  seven  supply  excellent  rubber. 
Specially  noteworthy  in  this  respect  are  Landolphia  droogman- 
siana , L.  owariensis,  L.  klainei,  L.  lecomtei,  and  the  celebrated 
L.  thollonii.  This  last  is  the  root  rubber  so  often  referred  to  by 
Grenfell  during  his  Lunda  expedition,  the  roots  being  really 
underground  branches.  Next  in  importance  as  regards  rubber- 
producing  comes  the  Clitandra  genus,  of  which  C.  arnoldiana 
gives  the  best  latex.  Lianas  of  this  species  when  only  four 
years  old  would  yield  in  twelve  months  about  two  pounds  of 
rubber.  The  genus  Carpodinus  has  many  species  in  the  Congo 
basin.  Of  these,  C.  gracilis  gives  good  rubber.  An  excellent 
latex  is  also  obtained  from  Tabernanthe  tenuiflora.  Another 
species  of  this  last  genus  has  a poisonous  sap,  which  is  used  as 
an  arrow  poison,  and  which  chemists  have  already  turned  into  a 
medicine  for  the  heart,  similar  to  the  closely  allied  Strophanthus. 
As  to  this  last  genus,  it  is  represented  by  five  species,  at  least, 
in  the  Congo  basin. 

1 Yet,  in  the  opinion  of  M.  Laurent,  the  Funtumia  is  so  easily  injured  by  exces- 
sive bleeding  that  it  may  in  the  long  run  prove  less  useful,  as  a source  of  rubber,  than 
the  Landolphias.  Grenfell  always  advocated  the  culture  of  root  rubber. 

2 Landolphia  dubreucquiana , L.  humilis , L.  droogmajtsiana,  L.  owariensis , Z. 
gentilii , Z.  klainei , Z.  florida , Z.  lecomtei , Z.  ochracea , Z.  robusta,  Z.  scandens , Z. 
thollonii. 


CHAPTER  XXXIII 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES:  II.  ZOOLOGY  OF 
THE  CONGO  BASIN 

NOTES  on  zoology  are  scattered  throughout  this  book 
in  connection  with  the  journeys  or  observations  of 
Grenfell  and  others,  but  it  may  be  convenient  to  the 
reader  to  resume  in  a few  words  the  special  characteristics  of 
the  fauna  of  the  Con^o  basin. 

In  chapter  xiv.  allusions  have  been  made  to  the  Forest 
zone  of  Equatorial  Africa  which  stretches  (with  occasional 
interruptions)  from  Portuguese  Guinea  in  the  far  west  to  Mount 
Kenia  in  the  far  east,  and  skirts  the  north  bank  of  the  Congo 
from  its  mouth  down  almost  to  the  8th  parallel  of  S.  Lat. 
This  forest  belt  proceeds  with  a certain  southerly  slant  from 
the  far  west  to  the  far  east  across  Africa.  I have  already 
given  reasons  for  suggesting  that  as  regards  its  characteristic 
mammalian  fauna  it  does  not  cross  the  main  stream  of  the 
Congo  from  north  to  south  or  east  to  west : unless  possibly 
this  should  occur  where  the  Lualaba  narrows  at  the  Cameron 
Falls. 

So  far,  the  only  traveller  who  has  recorded  the  existence  of 
an  Anthropoid  ape  in  the  Congo  basin,  south  or  west  of  the 
main  Congo,  is  Mr.  S.  P.  Verner.  The  example  to  which  he 
alludes,  however,  may  have  been  a baboon  ; or  if  it  was  a 
chimpanzi,  the  specimen  might  have  been  captured  to  the 
east  of  the  Lualaba  (between  which  and  the  shores  of  Tan- 
ganyika these  apes  are  numerous)  and  have  been  transported 
westwards  by  Luba  traders.  But  the  Rev.  Lawson  Forfeitt 
asserts  that  chimpanzis  (not  gorillas)  are  occasionally  met  with 
in  the  great  forests  of  Central  Congoland. 

As  regards  the  races  of  chimpanzi  to  be  found  within  the 
Congo  basin,  these  have  been  dealt  with  very  thoroughly  by 
the  Hon.  Walter  Rothschild  in  his  paper  on  the  Anthropoid 
Apes.1  According  to  his  conclusions  (supplemented  by  in- 
formation supplied  by  the  Baptist  missionaries  and  others),  it 
would  seem  as  though  the  northern  and  north-eastern  regions 

1 Proceedings  of  the  Zoological  Society  of  London , April,  1905. 

912 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


9i3 


of  the  Congo  were  occupied  by  the  Uganda  Chimpanzi 
(Simla,  troglodytes  schiveinfarthi),  succeeded  on  the  south,  be- 
tween the  Lualaba  and  the  west  coast  of  Tanganyika,  by  S.  t. 
marungensis.  If  any  species  of  anthropoid  ape  penetrates 
west  of  the  central  Lualaba  (i.e.  Upper  Congo),  it  is  probably 
this  marungensis  form,  which  exists  in  greatest  numbers  in  the 
Marungu  country,  to  the  south  of  the  River  Lukuga.  Possibly 
the  typical  species  Simla  troglodytes  of  Western  Equatorial 
Africa  may  extend  its  range  eastward  to  the  Sanga  River 
and  Stanley  Pool.  Simia  pygmcens  is  probably  the  chim- 
panzi of  the  Lower  Congo  and  Mayombe  forests.  A 
variety  of  the  large  Simia  vellerosus — a great,  greyish-brown 
chimpanzi — seems  to  be  found  along  the  northern  Congo,  and 
in  native  and  European  descriptions  is  often  confused  with  the 
gorilla.  It  is  stated  that  Professor  Matschie  has  also  received 
two  other  types  of  chimpanzi  from  the  central  basin  of  the 
Congo,  which  he  has  not  yet  described  or  classified.  It  will  be 
interesting  to  learn  definitely  whether  or  not  the  chimpanzi  is 
found  to  the  south  of  the  main  Congo,  or  whether  that  broad, 
lake-like  river  acts  as  an  effective  barrier  to  its  ran^e  in  South- 
Central  Africa. 

Grenfell  in  1904  reported  the  existence  of  a Gorilla  in  the 
Bwela  country,  near  the  River  Motima,  to  the  north  of  the 
main  Congo  (see  p.  344).  This  information,  if  correct,  helps  to 
fill  up  the  gap  in  the  gorilla’s  distribution  between  East-Central 
Africa,  along  the  western  edge  of  the  Albertine  Rift  valley 
(Gorilla  beringeri ),  and  the  eastern  Cameroons  (G.  gorilla 
diehli).  Mr.  Alexander  Yorke,  now  working  in  Liberia,  visited 
the  western  basin  of  the  Sanga  and  the  Ja  River  in  1905  with 
a survey  party  of  French  prospectors.  He  describes  the 
country  between  the  Ja  and  the  Bumba  rivers  as  being  almost 
“ Gorillaland,”  the  gorillas  there  being  so  large,  powerful,  and 
numerous  that  they  practically  possessed  the  country,  and  w*ere 
quite  ready  to  tackle  and  drive  away  any  human  invaders. 
The  caravan  with  wfffich  Mr.  Yorke  travelled  was  actually 
attacked  by  gorillas,  and  these  huge  apes  had  to  be  killed  in 
some  numbers  to  make  it  possible  for  the  party  to  proceed. 

The  Monkeys  of  the  Congo  basin  are  as  deserving  of  a 
special  monograph  as  any  other  group  of  mammals,  for  prob- 
ably this  region  can  show  the  greatest  number  of  species  of 
Cercopithecidce  and  some  of  their  most  beautiful  developments. 

The  baboons  being  creatures  that  prefer  the  open  to  the 
forest,  as  a rule,  are  not  so  well  represented  on  the  Congo  as 
in  other  parts  of  West  Africa.  Papio  doguera  has  been  col- 

II- — 2 E 


9i4  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

lected  by  the  present  writer  from  the  north-east.  The  common 
baboon  of  West  and  South-West  Congoland  is  probably  Papio 
anubis , and  of  Katanga  and  the  south-east,  Papio  babuin.  The 
Mandrill  and  Drill  are  both  said  to  exist  in  the  western  and 
north-western  Equatorial  region  of  the  Congo,  but  information 
on  the  subject  is  very  vague.1 

The  Mangabeys  are  exceptionally  well  represented2  by  the 
handsome  black  Cercocebus  albigena ,3  the  extraordinary  recently 
discovered  White  Mangabey  (C.  jamrachi)  of  Lake  Mweru 
(South-East  Congoland) ; Sclater’s  Mangabey  (C.  congicus ),  black 
with  a whitish  tail  and  a vertical  head-crest ; Hamlyn’s  Man- 
gabey (North-West  Congoland?) ; Hagenbeck’s  Mangabey  (C. 
hagenbecki ),  with  a smoky-grey  coat  ; the  Agile  Mangabey  (C. 
agilis ),  brown  and  yellow,  from  the  western  Mubangi  ; and  the 
yellow-bellied  and  white-collared  Mangabeys  (C.  chrysogaster 
and  C.  cethiopicus ),  both  probably  from  the  western  Congo 
(Gaboon,  Cameroons,  etc.).  The  Colobus  monkeys  will  prob- 
ably be  found  to  offer  one  or  more  species  peculiar  to  the 
Congo  basin.  They  possibly  include  the  peculiar  Colobus  of 
Ruwenzori  (C.  ruwenzorii ),  which  is  believed  also  to  inhabit 
the  high  volcanoes  to  the  south,  in  the  basin  of  Lake  Kivu  ; 
the  Red  Colobus  in  North-East  Congoland  (C.  rufomitratus ), 
merging  into  C.  ferrugineus  on  the  west ; and  the  handsome 
black  and  white  Colobus  matschiei  and  C.  occidentals  in  the 
east  and  central  part  of  the  Congo.  Colobus  cristatus  (grey- 
green,  brown)  may  be  found  possibly  along  the  Lower  Congo. 

The  Cercopithecine  monkeys  are — from  the  point  of  view 
of  a mammalogist  — the  glory  of  the  Congo.  It  would  be 
tedious  perhaps  to  enumerate  all  the  species  which  inhabit  the 
region  under  review,  since  some  of  them  are  common  to  the 
rest  of  West-Central  or  Equatorial  Africa,  or  are  familiar  to  us 
from  collections  made  on  the  Guinea  Coast.  But  the  species 
that  so  far  are  peculiar  to  the  Congo  or  are  prominent  members 
oL  its  fauna  are  as  follows  : — 

Cercopithecus  neglectusf  a yellowish -grey  monkey  with  a 

1 The  baboons  of  all  tropical  Africa,  and  of  Congoland  especially,  are  as  yet  very 
insufficiently  classified  and  located. 

2 As  compared  to  other  parts  of  West  and  Central  Africa. 

3 C.  albigena  albigena  develops  into  three  other  subspecies — C.  a.  aterrimus  in 
the  northern  and  north-eastern  Congo,  C.  a.  rothschildi  in  the  extreme  north-east 
and  in  Western  Uganda,  and  C.  a.  johnstoni  from  the  north-west  of  Lake  Tanganyika. 

4 These  notes  on  the  Cercocebus  and  Cercopithecus  monkeys  of  the  Congo,  and 
the  nomenclature  especially,  are  based  on  Mr.  R.  I.  Pocock’s  Monographic  Revision 
of  the  Monkeys  of  the  genus  Cercopithecus  ( P . Z.  S .,  London,  1907),  and  in  the  same 
writer’s  contributions  to  the  Annals  and  Magazine  of  Natural  History , October, 
December,  1906.  The  Rev.  Lawson  Forfeitt,  B.M.S.,  has  also  contributed  some 
information  on  the  monkeys  of  the  western  Congo. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


9*5 


fiery-red  brow-crest  over  the  eyes,  behind  and  below  which  are 
jet-black  bands  ; the  lower  half  of  the  muzzle,  the  beard  and 
throat,  are  white,  and  the  skin  of  the  face  under  the  white  hairs 
is  bright  sky-blue.  The  range  of  this  form  is,  with  interrup- 
tions, from  the  Cameroons  to  the  north-eastern  part  of  the 
Uganda  Protectorate,  across  the  Mubangi  basin.  Cercopithecus 
leucampyx  (with  perhaps  four  subspecies  within  Congo  limits) 
is  a large,  handsome  type  of  Cereopithecine,  of  which  the  Pluto 
monkey  of  Angola  and  south-west  Congo  is  a good  example. 
The  fur  is  usually  black  on  the  head  and  limbs,  grey  on  the 
under  parts  and  the  lower  portion  of  the  face,  and  greenish 
(very  glossy)  reddish  or  greyish  yellow  on  the  back.  In 
nearly  all  the  types  there  is  a white  or  pale  grey  band  across 
the  brows. 

C.  opisthostictis  from  the  south-east  (Lake  Mweru)  region  is 
a closely  allied  species,  but  much  blacker  with  a white  chin  and 
throat.  C.  kandti  of  the  eastern  borderland  (Kivu- Tanganyika) 
has  rusty-red  hair  on  the  buttocks  and  base  of  tail  and  on  part  of 
the  ventral  surface.  C.  nictitans  of  the  western  Congo  also 
resembles  the  leucampyx  type  in  its  general  black  and  grey 
coloration,  but  it  has  a large  yellowish-white  spot  on  the  nose  ; 
it  also  has  a deep  black  band  across  the  upper  chest.  C.  denti 
belongs  to  the  pretty  group  of  West  African  Mona  monkeys. 
It  is  found  in  the  Ituri  forests  of  north-eastern  Congo.  As  in  the 
Mona  species,  the  chest  and  ventral  surface  and  inner  side  of 
limbs  are  snowy  white,  contrasting  abruptly  with  the  glossy 
black,  greenish  brown,  reddish  grey  of  the  upper  parts  of  the 
body.  There  is  a whitish  brow-band,  the  whiskers  above 
the  ears  are  white,  and  the  skin  of  the  face  is  slate  colour. 
C.  wolfi  of  the  central  Congo  is  closely  akin  to  the  preceding 
species,  but  is  more  handsomely  coloured.  The  white  brow- 
band  is  more  definite  and  extends  to  the  ears,  the  outer  aspect 
of  the  hind  limbs  is  reddish  brown,  and  the  hair  along  the 
sides  of  the  body  is  yellow.  Yellow  hairs  are  also  mixed  with 
the  white  of  the  belly.  There  is  a blackish  band  across  the 
back. 

C.  grayi  (sometimes  called  Erxleben’s  monkey),  from  the 
western  Congo  and  Mubangi,  has  a broad  white  brow-band 
extending  backward  to  the  summit  of  the  head,  but  separated  in 
the  middle  over  the  base  of  the  nose  by  a black  streak.  The 
ear-fringes  are  long  and  yellow-red,  contrasting  boldly  with  the 
greenish-black  cheeks  and  black  head  and  neck.  The  back  is 
rusty  red  and  the  upper  part  of  the  rump  jet-black,  the  legs 
grey,  tail  mostly  black,  and  the  whole  under  surface  of  the  body 


gi6  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

orange-yellow — a vividly  handsome  monkey.  C.  I'hoesti , of 
Central  Congoland  and  the  Albertine  Rift  valley,  is  black- 
faced, with  black  and  white  hairs  growing  beneath  the  eyes, 
long,  thick,  white  whiskers,  a white  throat  and  chest  tapering  to 
a point,  succeeded  abruptly  by  a black  or  blackish-brown  belly. 
The  limbs  are  black  inside  and  out,  the  tail  is  greyish-black, 
and  the  upper  surface  of  the  black  or  grey  back  is  liberally 
sprinkled  with  orange-red. 

Of  the  Petaurist  or  White-nosed  Monkeys  there  is  one 
species — C.  ctscanius  of  the  western  Congo,  replaced  in  the 
east  by  a subspecies,  C.  a.  schmidti . These  charming  white- 
nosed monkeys  of  the  Congo  differ  chiefly  from  the  other 
Petaurists  of  West  Africa  by  having  an  orange-red  instead  of 
a grey  tail.  For  the  rest  they  have  slate-blue  upper  lips,  white 
noses,  white  whiskers  separated  from  a whitish  beard  by  a sharp 
black  line,  and  a reddish,  greenish-grey  body  with  black  limbs. 

Of  the  allied  West  African  Ceplms  group,  with  brilliant 
light  blue  upper  lips,  grey  noses,  yellow  cheek-hair,  and  reddish 
tails  (a  species  originally  described  by  Linnaeus),  the  typical 
form,  Cer copit  hecus  cep  hits,  may  extend  its  range  from  the 
Southern  Cameroons  coast  to  the  Sanga  River. 

The  black-faced,  pepper-and-salt  monkeys  of  the  cethiops 
group,  characteristic  of  so  much  of  North-West,  North-Central, 
East,  and  South  Africa,  enter  the  Congo  basin  in  the  forms  of 
Cercopithecus  tantalus  (northern  Mubangi),  C.  cynosurns 
(South -Central  Congoland),  and  C.  nigroviridis  (probably 
North-Central  Congoland).  This  last  is  the  most  brightly 
coloured  of  a soberly  tinted  group,  in  which  vivid  hues  are 
limited  to  the  sky-blue  or  scarlet  skin  of  scrotum  or  vulva. 
The  head  and  upper  parts  of  C.  nigroviridis  are  diversified 
with  black  and  gold  contrasting  with  the  cream-coloured  under 
parts.  The  beautiful  little  C.  talapoin  (olive  or  golden  yellow 
above,  greyish  white  below) — smallest  of  the  Cercopithecines 
— probably  inhabits  the  western  basin  of  the  Congo. 

The  red  long-legged  Patas  Monkeys  of  the  subgenus 
Erythrocebus  only  enter  the  Congo  basin  on  the  extreme 
north  and  north-east,  outside  the  forest  area. 

The  Lemurs  are  represented  by  the  Potto  ( Periodicticus ) in 
the  north-eastern  (Ituri)  forests,  and  perhaps  by  the  more 
specialized  Arctocebus  in  the  regions  abutting  on  the  Cameroons. 
There  are  perhaps  three  different  species  of  Galago  ( G . mon- 
teiri , G.  alleni , and  G.  demidoffi).  These  make  the  most 
charming  pets,  and  are  less  exclusively  nocturnal  in  their  habits 
than  is  the  case  with  the  sleepy  Potto. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


90 


The  Bats  of  the  Congo  region  have  been  but  little  studied, 
and  they  would  appear — superficially — to  be  so  abundant  in 
numbers  that  they  are  probably  proportionately  numerous  in 
species  and  genera.  This  is  not  to  be  wondered  at,  since  while 
for  the  Fruit  Bats  ( Epomophorus , Hypsignathus , Roussettus , 
Megaloglossus ) there  are  an  unusual  number  of  fruit-yielding 
trees,  insect  life  is  quite  enough  to  call  into  existence  and  main- 
tain an  enormous  army  of  insectivorous  bats  ( Hipposiderus , 
Nycteris,  Pipistrel  Ins,  Vespertilio , Chcilinolobus , Megaderma , 
Scotophilus , Kerivoula , Miniop  terns,  Taphozons,  and  Nyctino- 
mus).  The  non-scientific  observer  will  be  most  struck  perhaps 
by  the  large  Epomophore  Fruit  Bats,  and  unpleasantly  impressed 
thereat.  Grenfell  himself  and  several  German  explorers  have 
recorded  the  eerie  sensation  of  witnessing  these  flights  of 
“ devil’s  birds  ” on  the  Sankuru  and  Lukenye  rivers,  issuing 
from  the  dense  forests  in  the  declining  daylight  on  their  foraging 
expeditions,  disturbing  camping-places  in  the  forest  by  their 
querulous  cries.  A closer  acquaintance  with  some  of  these 
fruit-eating  bats  would  not  dissipate  the  disagreeable,  uncanny 
feeling  they  are  apt  to  produce,  for  the  “ Hammer-headed  Bat” 
(. Hypsignathus  monstrosus ) is  one  of  the  most  hideous  creatures 
ever  evolved — at  any  rate  from  a human  point  of  view. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  Kerivoula  genus  of  insect-eating 
bats,  which  inhabits  Western  Africa  and  Eastern  Asia,  repre- 
sents the  nearest  approach  the  Cheiroptera  have  yet  made 
towards  beauty  of  coloration.  Bats  of  this  genus  resemble 
a huge  golden-plumaged  moth. 

As  regards  Insectivores,  it  is  now  thought  possible  that  the 
large  water-dwelling  Potamogale  ferox  discovered  by  Du  Chaillu 
in  the  rivers  of  the  Gaboon  extends  its  range  eastwards  as  far 
as  the  Sanga  or  the  western  Mubangi.  It  is  not  improbable 
that  it  will  be  eventually  discovered  (like  so  many  other 
creatures  characteristic  of  the  Equatorial  forest  zone)  as  far 
east  as  the  Aruwimi  basin.  Other  genera  of  insectivores 
represented  in  the  Congo  basin  appear  to  be  Crocidnra  and 
Sylvisorex  (Shrews),  Rhyncocyon  and  Macroscelides  (Elephant 
Shrews — in  North-East  Congoland),  Chrysochloris  (Golden 
Moles),  and  a Hedgehog  ( Erinacens  albiventris). 

The  range  of  the  leopard  of  course  extends  over  the  whole  of 
the  Congo  basin,  as  it  does  over  all  Africa  south  of  the  Sahara 
Desert  (not  closely  occupied  by  the  white  man),  and  even  still 
includes  the  wooded  regions  of  North  Africa.  It  is  the  most 
ubiquitous  of  all  the  great  carnivores,  in  Africa,  and  is  generally 
found  in  two  types,  both  of  which  are  represented  in  the  Congo 


9i8  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

basin.  The  leopard  of  the  Sinai  Peninsula,  and  possibly  the 
almost  extinct  leopard  of  the  Nubian  Desert  near  the  Red  Sea, 
belong  to  the  Persian  group  of  leopards,  of  quite  a distinct 
variety,  approximating  in  their  large  rosettes  to  the  markings  of 
the  ounce  ; but  the  leopard  or  “ panther  ” of  Algeria  and  Tunis 
is  scarcely  distinguishable  from  the  large  leopard  with  small 
rosettes  which  is  found  all  over  the  rest  of  Africa  down  to  Cape 
Colony,  in  the  open  country.  This  big  panther  is,  in  full-grown 
males,  slightly  leonine  in  appearance,  with  longer  legs  than 
belong  to  the  forest  variety.  This  type  inhabits  the  eastern, 
southern,  and  south-western  parts  of  the  Congo  basin.  Else- 
where it  is  the  forest  type  of  leopard,  with  shorter  legs  and 
larger  rosettes.  This  form  also  grows  to  magnificent  dimensions 
in  some  parts  of  West  Africa,  such  as  the  interior  of  Liberia 
and  in  the  northern  forest  regions  of  the  Congo.1  This  forest 
leopard  of  West-Central  Africa  more  nearly  resembles  the 
leopard  of  India  and  Ceylon.  On  the  north-east  frontier 
regions  of  the  Congo  near  Ruwenzori  there  is  a race  of  leopards 
with  markings  almost  like  those  of  the  jaguar. 

The  ferocity  of  the  leopard,  its  cunning  and  its  ubiquity,  have 
made  a far  deeper  impression  on  the  negro  mind  than  has  the  lion. 
Indeed,  over  the  greater  part  of  West-Central  and  Western  Africa 
the  lion  is  either  non-existent  or  has  all  the  appearance  of  a 
recently  arrived  animal,  not  known  to  man  by  a long-inherited 
tradition,  whereas  the  leopard  seems  to  have  grown  up  with  him 
from  the  commencement  of  the  genus  Homo.  Far  more  women, 
children,  and  men  are  killed  by  leopards  in  the  Congo  basin 
(proportionately)  than  there  are  by  lions  in  Eastern  Africa. 

Nevertheless  the  Lion  is  a native  of  the  Congo  regions, 
though  naturally  he  is  not  present  in  the  dense  forests.  From 
the  south-east  he  has  penetrated  northwards  as  far  as  the  middle 
Sankuru  River,  and  from  south-western  Tanganyika  his  range 
extends  right  across  the  southern  third  of  the  Congo  basin  to 
the  less  settled  regions  of  Angola.  The  lion  is  also  found  in 
the  north-west,  in  the  Fanwe  countries  of  the  upper  Sanga, 
while  its  presence  has  also  been  recorded  in  the  northern  basin 
of  the  Mubangi,  in  fact,  everywhere  in  the  Congo  basin  where 
man  is  not  too  thickly  settled  or  too  well  armed,  or  the  dense 
forest  too  predominant. 

The  Golden  Cat  (. Felis  aurata)  is  found  throughout  the 
northern  half  of  the  Congo  basin,  and  the  smaller  wild  cats 
which  are  akin  to  the  parent  form  of  the  domestic  cat  and  the 

1 A fine  specimen  of  this  type,  killed  by  the  Rev.  W.  H.  Stapleton,  may  be  seen 
photographed  on  p.  231. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


919 


Serval  are  almost  universally  distributed.  The  Servaline  Cat 
is  found  in  the  north  and  north-east.  The  Civet  inhabits 
nearly  all  the  Congo  territories  except  the  densest  forests. 
Here,  on  the  contrary,  there  are  numbers  of  Genets.  The 
present  writer  discovered  a new  and  beautiful  genet  (the  largest 
of  the  group — Genetta  victories ) in  the  Ituri  forests  of  the 
north-east  Congo.  The  Poiatia  or  African  Linsang  is  found  in 
North-West  Congoland,  and  the  two-spotted  Paradoxure  ( Nan - 
dinia  binotata)  nearly  all  over  the  Congo  basin.  The  ichneu- 
mons belong  to  the  genera  Herpestes , Crossarchus , and  Bdeogale . 

Noteworthy  creatures,  because  of  their  importance  in  the 
eyes  of  medicine-men  and  wizards,  are  the  pretty  black- 
and  - white  weasels  ( Ictonyx  and  Poecilogale).  Ictonyx , the 
“ Zorilla,”  is  found  over  much  of  Congoland,  especially 
in  the  west  and  north ; but  Poecilogale  so  far  has  only 
been  recorded  from  the  north-east.  The  Ratel  ( Mellivora ) 
— a large  white-and-black  badger-like  Mustelid — is  found  in  the 
northern  part  of  the  Congo  basin  in  a peculiar  subspecific 
form  ( M '.  ratel  cottoni). 

The  Spotted  Hyaena  ( H . crocitta)  is  probably  the  only  type 
of  hyaena  found  in  the  Congo  basin,  and  is  of  very  doubtful 
occurrence  in  the  west  and  in  the  forest  area,  though  it  cer- 
tainly exists  up  to  the  verge  of  the  dense  forest  on  the  north- 
east, as  it  has  been  collected  there  by  the  present  writer.  Here, 
in  the  north-east  Congo,  the  Spotted  Hyaena  seems  almost  a 
local  variety,  of  much  handsomer  appearance  than  is  usually  the 
case  with  Hyeena  crocitta.  The  fur  is  longer  and  more  abun- 
dant, and  the  spots  and  stripes  are  blacker.  The  Spotted 
Hyaena  grows  to  a considerable  size  in  South  Congoland  and  in 
the  extreme  north,  and  in  both  areas  it  is  a fierce  animal,  though 
it  rarely  attacks  man  unless  he  is  asleep,  in  which  case  it 
endeavours  to  strangle  him.  The  Side-striped  Jackal  is  toler- 
ably abundant  over  all  Congoland.  The  Cape  Hunting  Dog 
inhabits  the  south-east  and  south-west  of  the  Congo  basin,  and 
the  extreme  north. 

Amongst  notable  rodents  should  be  mentioned  the  peculiar 
Flying  Anomalures1  ( Anomalurus  fulgens , of  the  west,  north- 
west, and  centre,  A.  pusillus  of  the  north-east,  and  A.  batesi , 
A.  beecrofti , and  A.  beldeni  of  the  north-west  and  north). 
These  rodents,  which  may  have  a distant  connection  with  the 
Squirrel  group,  are  perhaps  the  most  arboreal  type  of  mammal 

1 Vide  present  writer’s  work  on  Liberia,  and  also  “Notes  on  the  Mammals  of 
Southern  Cameroons  and  the  Benito,”  by  George  L.  Bates,  in  Proceedings  of  the 
Zoological  Society  of  London , 1905. 


920  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

existing,  unless  an  exception  be  made  in  favour  of  the  lemur- 
like  Galeopithecus  of  South-Eastern  Asia.  They  fly  or  sail  from 
tree  to  tree  on  a downward  slant  by  means  of  a parachute-like 
membrane  along  the  sides  of  the  body  from  limb  to  limb.  The 
under  side  of  the  tail,  near  the  body,  is  fitted  with  sharp-edged 
scales,  of  great  assistance  to  the  animal  as  it  climbs  up  the 
rough  bark  of  trees.  Other  members  of  this  group  have 
recently  been  discovered  in  the  basin  of  the  Congo  and  in  the 
Cameroons — the  genera  Idiurus  and  Zenkerella } The  last- 
named,  however,  has  lost  or  has  not  developed  a flying  mem- 
brane, and  is  much  more  active  in  regard  to  the  use  of  its 
limbs. 

The  beautiful  golden-red  squirrels  referred  to  by  Grenfell 
and  other  missionaries  are  probably  Sciurus  rufobrac hiatus. 
There  is  also  a giant  squirrel — Sciurus  stangeri  eborivorus — 
found  in  French  Congo  and  along  the  lower  Mubangi,  that  is 
stated  by  Grenfell  and  other  travellers  to  gnaw  ivory.  Another 
very  large  squirrel  belongs  to  the  genus  Funisciurus.  The 
ground-dwelling  and  pygmy  squirrels  are  species  of  the  genera 
Xerus  and  Nannosciurus.  The  common  porcupine  ( Hystrix 
cr is  tat  a),  or  its  Central  African  type  H.  galeata , inhabits  the 
greater  part  of  the  Congo  basin,  especially  the  west,  north,  and 
centre.  In  the  west  and  north  (of  the  main  Congo)  the  Brush- 
tailed Porcupine  ( Atherura ) extends  its  range  eastwards  as  far 
as  the  upper  Ituri.  The  large  African  Octodont,  sometimes 
known  as  the  Ground-Rat  or  Ground-Pig  ( Thrynomys ),  is  found 
all  over  the  Congo  region,  except  perhaps  in  the  densest  forests. 
Its  flesh  is  more  delicious  to  eat  than  that  of  any  mammal 
known  to  the  present  writer,  so  much  so,  that  it  might  well  be 
domesticated  and  bred  for  the  table.  The  dormice  ( Graphi - 
urus ) are  present  in  several  species.  The  Pouched  Rat 
( Cricetomys ) is  common  on  the  west  and  north.  There  are 
Mole-Rats  ( Bathyergidce ) in  the  south-west  and  south  ( Georyclzus 
mechowi  and  G.  mellandi ),  and  in  the  south-east  Heliophobius 
robustus  of  the  Bangweulu  basin,  and  H.  marungensis  of  south- 
west Tanganyika. 

In  addition  to  this  enumeration  may  be  mentioned  hosts  of 
rats  and  mice  of  the  family  Muridcz  and  of  the  following  genera  : 
Mus,  Leggada  (the  Spiny  Mice),  Adnomys  (Bush  Mice), 
Arvicantkis  (Striped  or  Leopard  Mice),  Malacomys , D corny s, 
and  Dendromys  (small,  reddish-coloured  mice,  building  nests  in 
trees  or  bushes). 

The  hares  of  the  Congo  region  have  not  been  properly 

1 Aethurus  of  De  Winton. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


921 


classified.  No  form  of  hare  has  yet  been  recorded  from  the 
central  or  heavily  forested  regions  of  the  Congo  basin.  Possibly 
those  of  the  north-east  and  south-east  may  be  Lepns  crawshayi , 
and  of  the  south,  Lepus  whytei.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that 
amongst  the  Nyamnyam  of  the  northern  Congo  basin  brass 
models  of  hares  of  an  Egyptian  type  are  occasionally  found  as 
amulets. 

The  Hyraxes  are  chiefly  represented  in  Congoland  by 
arboreal  forms  of  the  subgenus  Dendrohyrax.  In  the  north-west 
and  perhaps  the  centre  is  found  Procavia  dorsalis  (which  has  a 
well-defined  white  spot  on  the  top  of  the  back)  ; in  the  north-east 
and  east  are  Procavia  marmota  and  P.  stuhlmanni.  P.  brncei 
may  be  the  hyrax  of  the  south-east,  but  there  are  no  doubt 
other,  as  yet  undefined,  species  in  the  west  and  south  awaiting 
identification  ; for  no  part  of  the  Congo  basin — forest,  upland, 
or  high  mountain — seems  to  be  without  one  or  more  representa- 
tives of  this  order  of  very  primitive  ungulates.  As  in  Liberia 
and  the  forested  regions  of  the  Uganda  Protectorate  and  of 
Kilimanjaro,  so  also  in  Congoland:  the  tree-hyraxes  make  night 
hideous  by  their  cries,  and  no  doubt  account  for  many  of  the 
goblins  and  bogies  imagined  by  the  natives. 

The  elephant  of  the  Congo  no  doubt  belongs  to  several  dif- 
ferent races,  subspecies  or  varieties,  which  are  determined  either 
by  the  relative  straightness  of  the  tusks,  the  shape  of  the  skull,  the 
size  of  the  body,  or  the  size  and  shape  of  the  ears.  There  are 
persistent  stories  of  a dwarf  elephant  type  existing  in  Western 
Equatorial  Congoland  and  in  the  adjoining  territories  of  the 
Gaboon  and  Cameroons  (provisionally  named  Elephas  africanus 
pumilio  by  Professor  Noack).  Moreover,  from  the  region 
verging  on  the  south-westernmost  limits  of  the  Congo  basin 
have  been  derived  specimens  of  elephants  with  ears  propor- 
tionately smaller  than  those  of  any  other  African  type.  The 
elephants  with  long,  straight  tusks  discovered  by  Captain 
Grogan  in  the  valley  of  the  Albert  Nyanza  may  be  the  E.  a . 
albertensis  of  Lydekker.  They  are  said  to  extend  their  range 
also  within  the  north-eastern  limits  of  the  Congo  basin.  The 
elephants  of  Western,  Central,  and  Eastern  Congoland  are  of  the 
E.  a . cyclotis  type  as  described  by  Mr.  Lydekker  in  his  dis- 
sertation on  the  ears  of  African  elephants.1  The  elephants  seen 
by  the  present  writer  on  the  western  Congo  did  not  strike  him 
as  offering  any  marked  peculiarities  in  contrast  to  the  elephants 
of  East  Africa,  except  that  the  ears  were  slightly  more  rounded, 
and  not  produced  into  such  a marked  lobe,  while  the  tusks  in 

1 Proceedings  of  the  Zoological  Society  of  London , August,  1907. 


922  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  possession  of  the  natives  were  decidedly  less  thick  in  pro- 
portion to  the  length  than  in  the  case  of  Zanzibar  ivory.  The 
skin  colour  of  the  Congo  elephant  is  a very  light  grey.  But 
the  whole  question  of  the  races  or  subspecies  of  the  Congo 
elephant  is  as  yet  so  insufficiently  supported  by  photographs 
and  specimens  that  it  is  hardly  ripe  for  discussion  (see  p.  945). 

So  far,  the  manati — the  Sirenian  of  Western  Africa — has 
never  been  reported  to  exist  anywhere  within  the  inner  basin  of 
the  Congo,  although  it  is  probably  found  in  the  estuary  of 
the  Lower  Congo.  It  is,  I believe,  now  certain  that  the  manati 
inhabits  the  upper  Niger  from  the  vicinity  of  Bamaku  down  to 
its  junction  with  the  Benue,  as  well  as  the  last-named  river. 
M.  Auguste  Chevalier  {Li  Afrique  Centrale  Franqaise)  suggests 
that  it  is  even  found  in  the  Shari  River  and  in  some  of  the 
small  lakes  or  lagoons  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  Shari  basin. 
Had  the  manati  been  discovered  within  the  inner  basin  of  the 
Congo,  it  would  certainly  have  tended  to  show  that  the  Upper 
Congo  had  in  the  early  part  of  the  Tertiary  Epoch  been  con- 
nected with  the  waters  of  Lake  Chad  and  the  Niger. 

The  hippopotamus  of  the  Congo  probably  offers  no  sub- 
specific difference  from  the  average  type  of  Hippopotamus 
major.  As  yet  there  is  no  trace  of  the  Pygmy  Hippopotamus 
of  Liberia  within  these  limits. 

In  1902  Grenfell  noted  the  existence  in  the  Aruwimi 
forests  of  a big  black  Forest  Pig.  He  made  the  discovery  in 
more  definite  terms  than  anybody  else,  but  his  notification  did 
not  reach  Europe  in  time  for  it  to  attract  attention.  In  the 
interval  actual  specimens  had  reached  Brussels  from  the 
Aruwimi,  and  the  British  Museum  from  East  Africa,  and 
the  new  pig  was  placed  in  a genus  by  itself — Hylochoerus  (Old- 
field Thomas).  Grenfell,  however,  described  the  Poorest  Pig  with 
accuracy  in  1902 — its  large  size,  long  black  bristles,  sharp  but 
only  slightly  curved  tusks,  and  great  strength.  He  makes  a 
note  on  one  of  his  sketch  surveys  to  the  effect  that  the  Nsulu 
(quoting  its  native  Babali  name)1  is  able  to  fight  a leopard  on 
equal  terms. 

The  Hylochoerus  of  the  north-eastern  Congo  is  distinguished 
as  H.  ituriensis  by  Professor  Matschie;2  the  Forest  Pig  of  North- 
West  Congoland  and  the  Cameroons  discovered  by  Mr.  George 
L.  Bates  has  been  named  H.  rimator  by  Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas. 

1 It  is  another  remarkable  link  between  the  languages  of  the  north-east  Congo 
and  Fernando  Po  that  the  word  for  “ pig”  should  be  so  similar.  Fernandian,  EsSloj 
Babali  (south  of  Aruwimi),  Nsulu ; Kibira  (near  upper  Lindi  River),  Nzale. 

2 Annales  du  Musee  du  Congo:  “Le  Sanglier  noir  de  l’lturi  : Hylochoerus 
ituriensis , by  Professor  Paul  Matschie  (of  Berlin). 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


923 


It  is  more  specialized  than  the  Forest  Pig  of  the  Ituri,  and  that 
again  is  somewhat  more  peculiar  than  the  Hylochoeri  of  Eastern 
Equatorial  Africa. 

The  Conoco  basin  is  not  as  remarkable  for  the  number  of 

o 

species  among  the  other  ruminant  Artiodactyles  as  Eastern 
Africa.  But  it  contains  the  most  interesting  of  all  (from  a 
biological  point  of  view),  the  Water  Chevrotain  (. Dorcatherium ), 
which  is  now  known  to  exist  right  athwart  the  northern  basin 
of  the  Congo  in  the  forest  area,  from  Senegambia  and  the 
Cameroons  to  the  edge  of  the  Semliki  valley  (in  two  or  more 
varieties).  In  Tragelaphs  the  Congo  regions  are  well  endowed. 
The  magnificent  Bongo  (. Boocercus ) is  an  inhabitant  of  the 
forest  area  to  the  north,  west,  and  east  of  the  main  Congo. 
The  southern  range  of  this  handsomest  of  all  the  Tragelaphs 
is  probably  about  S.  Lat.  50.  The  Bush-buck  and  Harnessed 
Tragelaph  ( Tragelapkus  scriptus,  etc.)  is  found  in  two  or  three 
varying  forms  or  species  all  over  the  Congo  basin.  It  is  of 
course  the  most  widely  distributed  type  of  the  Tragelaphincz  in 
Africa.  The  Livingstone  Eland  exists  in  the  extreme  south- 
west,  south,  and  south-east  of  the  Congo  basin.  It  is  possible 
that  the  magnificent  Derbian  or  Giant  Eland  of  Senegambia 
and  the  Bahr-al-Ghazal  may  penetrate  the  Congo  basin  and  the 
valley  of  the  middle  Mubangi  or  upper  Wele.  The  Kudu  is  of 
less  certain  occurrence  within  these  regions,  but  may  perhaps 
be  found  in  the  extreme  south,  south-west,  and  south-east. 
The  splay-footed,  marsh-haunting  tragelaphs  with  greatly 
developed  hoofs  (. Limnotragus ) are  represented  by  L.  grcitus , 
an  inhabitant  of  the  lake-like  regions  of  the  Upper  Congo  (and 
possibly  of  the  central  basin  in  general).  This  very  handsome 
type,  boldly  spotted  and  streaked  with  white,  differs  from  the 
other  forms  of  Limnotragus  by  retaining  the  white  markings  in 
the  adult  male.  Amongst  the  Antelopes  there  is  a species  of 
Reed-buck  ( Cervicapra ) in  the  western  Congo,  and  one  or  more 
species  of  the  same  genus  over  the  whole  of  the  southern  half 
outside  the  forest  area.  None  of  these  have  as  yet  been 
correctly  identified  or  named,  but  the  western  form  may  be 
identical  with  the  Reed-buck  of  Senegambia.  The  Water-bucks 
( Kobus ) of  the  Congo  are  probably  represented  by  the  following 
species,  with  no  doubt  one  or  two  others  as  yet  unclassified  : 
Kobus  singsing  in  the  north-west  down  to  the  Congo  estuary  and 
the  Sanga.1  In  the  south-west  regions  bordering  on  Angola 
the  type  of  water-buck  is  probably  K obits  penricei,  passing  by 

1 See  on  p.  269  the  fine  horns  of  this  species  fastened  against  the  wall  of  a 
building. 


924  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

insensible  gradations  into  Crawshay’s  Water-buck,  which  is  no 
doubt  the  prevailing  type  over  the  southern  and  south-eastern 
area  of  the  Congo  State.  The  water-buck  of  the  east — that  is 
to  say,  of  the  regions  between  the  Lualaba  and  Tanganyika — 
has  not  yet  been  identified,  but  it  may  be  a transitional  form 
between  the  Kobus  defassa  of  North-East  Congoland  and  the 
Common  Water-buck  ( K ’ ellipsiprymnus).  Of  the  lesser  Kobs 
nothing  definite  is  known.  There  is  a type,  perhaps  transitional 
between  Thomas’s  Kob  (of  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa)  and 
Buffon’s  Kob  (of  the  Niger  basin)  in  the  Mubangi  region,  and 
perhaps  also  in  Central  Congoland.  In  the  far  south,  Kobus 
vardoni  and  the  handsome  Leche  ( Kobus  iechee ) are  certainly 
found  within  Congo  limits. 

The  only  representatives  of  the  Oryx  group  are  types  of 
the  Sable  Antelope  genus.  Hippotragus  ( Adgoceros ) equinus 
{baker i ?)  is  said  to  be  found  in  the  northern  basin  of  the 
Mubangi.  The  southern  Roan  Antelope  (and  perhaps  the 
Sable)  penetrate  also  into  the  south-west  and  south-east  of  the 
Congo  basin. 

Except  in  the  far  north,  there  is  no  species  of  true  gazelle 
in  Congoland  ; if  this  group  of  antelopes  is  represented  there, 
it  will  probably  be  by  one  of  the  large  types,  like  the  Red- 
necked Gazelle  ( Gazella  ruficollis)  or  the  Gazella  dama  of 
Senegambia.  The  Pala  of  South-West  and  South  Congoland 
is  probably  Adpyceros  petersi , merging  in  the  south  east  into  the 
ordinary  Pala,  and  perhaps  the  dwarf  variety  named  after  the 
present  writer. 

From  the  small  horns  attached  to  so  many  fetishistic  objects, 
it  is  probable  that  Congoland  contains  small  antelopes  of  the 
genera  Ourebia , Raphiceros , and  even  Oreotragus  (on  the  high 
mountains  of  the  south) ; but  so  far  no  specimens  have  been 
positively  identified.  In  the  tropical  forests  of  the  north  and 
centre  there  may  also  exist  (according  to  some  of  the  stories 
in  native  folklore)  the  Royal  Antelope  of  West  Africa  in  its 
Cameroons  type — Neotragus  batesi. 

As  regards  hartebeests,  the  Cape  Hartebeest  penetrates  to 
the  south-western  limits  of  the  Congo  basin,  and  the  south- 
eastern  area  is  occupied  by  Bttbalis  lichtensteini.  No  true  harte- 
beest has  yet  been  even  reported  from  the  far  north,  the 
reference  to  this  type  of  antelope  by  recent  English  travellers 
being  really  applicable  to  the  allied  Tsesebe  genus  (. Damaliscus ). 
The  exact  type  of  Da7naliscus  from  the  Mubangi  basin  has  not 
yet  been  clearly  identified.  It  is  probably  the  Korrigum  (. D . 
korrigum)  of  Western  and  West-Central  Africa.  It  is  just 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


925 


possible,  however,  that  the  Great  Hartebeest  (Bnba/is  major ) 
penetrates  into  the  north-western  area  of  the  Congo  from  the 
hinterland  of  the  Cameroons,  where  it  is  known  to  exist. 

In  the  smaller  antelopes  of  the  genus  Cephalophus  the 
Congo  territories  are  obviously  very  rich — so  far  as  numbers 
are  concerned.  The  Yellow-backed  Duiker  (C.  sylvicultrix ) 
has  now  been  recorded  from  almost  all  parts  of  the  Congo 
basin,  as  far  to  the  south  and  east  as  Lake  Mweru.  The 
smaller  duikers  are  represented  by  C.  ceqnatorialis ; C.  nigri- 
frons  (in  the  west) ; C.  dorsalis , C.  callipygus,  C.  melanorheus , 
and  the  red  C.  weynsi ; perhaps  also  by  C.  coronatus  on  the 
north-west ; C.  leucogaster , C.  castaneus ; and  by  the  Common 
Duiker  (C.  grimmi)  in  the  south-east  and  south.  But  there  are 
probably  more  species  of  this  group  peculiar  to  the  Congo  basin 
still  awaiting  identification. 

The  Red  Buffalo  of  the  Congo  and  of  the  West  African 
coast-lands  apparently  ranges  in  its  distribution  from  Liberia 
eastwards  along  the  Guinea  Coast  across  the  Niger  delta  into 
the  Cameroons,  and  thence  over  the  whole  of  the  Congo  basin 
right  up  to  the  Semliki  River  valley,  or  at  any  rate  to  the  edge 
of  the  Congo  Forest  that  overlooks  the  Semliki.  Here  the 
present  writer  has  observed  within  one  days  march  the  Black 
Buffalo  of  the  Cape  species  ( Bos  caffer)  and  (on  the  edge  of  the 
Congo  Forest)  the  Red  Dwarf  Buffalo  ( Bos  pumilus).  The 
range  of  the  Red  Buffalo  in  the  south  is  probably  limited  more 
or  less  by  the  6th  degree  of  S.  Lat.,  except  perhaps  in  the 
basins  of  the  Kasai  and  that  of  the  Kwango,  up  which  the 
Red  Buffalo  extends  to  the  flanks  of  the  great  Lunda  Plateau. 
On  this  plateau  it  is  replaced  by  the  Cape  buffalo,  perhaps  in  a 
local  variety.  The  buffalo  of  Central  Africa  ( Bos  planiceros ) 
extends  its  southern  range  across  the  Mubangi  in  its  northern 
reaches,  and  is  the  buffalo  type  of  the  high  grass-lands  of  the 
Cameroons  northern  hinterland. 

In  the  early  part  of  1908  the  Government  of  the  Congo 
State  issued  a monograph  on  the  genus  Ocapia  by  M.  Julien 
Fraipont.  This  authoritative  work  adduced  evidence  to  show 
that  the  range  of  the  Okapi  is  a good  deal  more  extensive  than 
was  hitherto  thought  to  be  the  case.  Its  area  of  distribution 
agrees  somewhat  with  that  of  the  Anthropoid  apes  and  another 
typical  forest  mammal,  the  Hylochoerus  pig.  The  Okapi  has 
now  been  obtained  from  as  far  south  as  the  vicinity  of  Nyangwe 
and  the  Manyema  country  (say,  to  50  S.  Lat.).  But  so  far  no 
specimen  has  been  reported  from  the  regions  west  of  the 
Lualaba-Congo.  North  of  the  main  Congo  the  range  of 


926  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  Okapi  extends  to  the  Lua  River  and  possibly  even  to  the 
western  Mubangi.  It  is  very  probable  now  that  it  will  be  dis- 
covered (as  has  been  the  Forest  Pig,  Hylochoerus ) to  the  west 
of  the  Mubangi.  Rumours  of  its  existence  have  been  re- 
ported by  a British  medical  officer  from  the  forests  to  the  south 
of  the  upper  Benue.  There  would  seem  to  be  but  one  species, 
Ocapia  johnstoni.  There  are  possibly  two  or  more  subspecies. 
One  of  these,  which  is  slightly  smaller  and  more  western  in  its 
habitat  than  the  typical  Okapi,  is  O.  j.  liebrechtsi,  by  some 
authorities  considered  a distinct  species. 

Grenfell  came  across  evidence  of  the  existence  of  the  Okapi 
to  the  south  of  the  middle  Aruwimi  in  1902.  When  he  first 
made  his  notes  about  this  animal  he  was  not  aware  of  the 
present  writers  discovery  in  the  previous  year,  and  natur- 
ally imagined  that  he  had  chanced  on  an  entirely  new  beast. 
He  described  it  quite  accurately  from  portions  of  skin  and  from 
native  evidence,  and  said  that  its  native  name  to  the  south  of 
the  Aruwimi  was  Ndumba. 

A subspecies  of  giraffe  ( Giraffa  Camelopardalis  congoensis ) 
seems  to  occur  within  the  southern  limits  of  the  Congo  basin. 
Another  subspecies  ( G . c.  angolensis)  is  found  in  Southern 
Angola,  where  the  conditions  of  the  land  are  somewhat  arid. 
The  giraffe  of  the  southern  Congo  is  probably  identical  with 
that  found  in  the  valley  of  the  Loangwa  and  in  Northern 
Zambezia.  In  Northern  Congoland  a giraffe — probably  G.  c. 
peralta  of  Nigeria — is  found  within  the  park-lands  of  the 
Mubangi  basin,  and  possibly  the  giraffe  of  the  mountain  Nile 
(G.  c.  cottoni ) also  penetrates  into  the  north-eastern  corner  of 
the  Congo  basin. 

With  regard  to  Pholidota  “Edentates” — Scaly  Ant-eaters 
or  Pangolins — they  are  represented  in  the  Congo  region  by 
three  West  African  species — Manis  gigantea,  M.  longicaudata, 
and  M.  tricuspis  ; but  the  range  of  these  appears  to  be  limited 
to  the  northern  half  of  the  Congo  basin,  in  fact,  more  or  less  to 
the  Equatorial  forest  zone.  In  the  south-east  and  south-west 
of  Congoland  the  only  species  of  manis  appears  to  be  the 
East  African  form — Manis  temmincki. 

The  Tubulidentata  (Aard-varks)  inhabit  the  greater  portion 
of  the  Congo  basin.  In  the  north-west  they  are  probably 
represented  by  Orycteropns  liptodon  p and  in  the  north  and 
north-east  by  O.  erikssoni.  The  Aard-varks  of  South-West  and 
Southern  Congoland  have  not  been  classified  as  yet.  They 
may  be  akin  to  Orycteropns  afer . 

1 A.  S.  Hirst,  Annals  and  Magazine  of  Natural  History , April,  1906. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


927 

The  Birds  of  the  Congo  basin  have  been  described  in  an 
official  publication  of  the  Congo  State.1  They  do  not,  so  far, 
offer  any  very  remarkable  genus  or  species  confined  to  the 
Congo  region,  such  as  may  be  the  case  with  certain  mammals. 
One  of  the  most  interesting  birds  of  the  Congo  (from  some 
points  of  view)  is  the  primitive  gallinaceous  type — Phasidus 
niger — a dusky-coloured  Guinea-fowl,  the  range  of  which 
extends  from  the  Gaboon  across  the  northern  forest  belt  to  the 
upper  Ituri.  There  is  only  one  species  of  true  vulture — 
Neophron  monachus .2  The  “Fishing  Vulture”  ( Gypohierax ) is 
found  over  the  whole  of  the  Congo  basin,  stopping  very 
abruptly,  however,  at  the  Nile  water-parting,  yet  extending 
south-eastwards  to  the  north  end  of  Lake  Nyasa.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  chocolate-and-white  Fishing  Eagle — Haliaetus 
vocifer—\\&s  only  hitherto  been  recorded  from  the  eastern  part 
of  the  Congo,  though  in  all  probability  its  range  is  more 
extended.  A flamingo  is  found  on  Tanganyika  and  most  of  the 
Congo  lakes,  and  the  broad  reaches  of  the  navigable  rivers. 
This  is  probably  Phoeniconais  minor.  Three  species  of  pelicans 
inhabit  this  region — Pelicctnus  rufescens , P.  onocrotalus , and  P. 
sharpei.  The  ducks  and  geese  are  those  of  West  and  Central 
Africa.  The  gull  of  Tanganyika  and  the  other  lakes  is  Larus 
cirrhocephalus.  The  red-beaked  Scissor-billed  Tern  and  two 
other  species  of  terns  are  common  objects  in  connection  with 
any  large  sheet  of  water.  The  beautiful  white  egrets  are 
Herodias  alba  and  H.  garzetta.  The  Crowned  Crane  is  of  the 
West  African  species  (except  in  the  extreme  south  and  east,  where 
it  belongs  to  the  South  African  type).  Sunbirds  of  something 
like  twenty  species  (none  of  them  so  far  peculiar  to  the  Congo) 
certainly  embellish  the  landscapes  with  their  extraordinary 
beauty  of  plumage — a display  of  colour,  pure  and  metallic,  for 
which  this  group  never  receives  sufficient  credit,  being  confused 
in  the  minds  of  ignorant  people  with  the  overpraised  Humming- 
birds of  South  America. 

There  are  the  usual  Glossy  Starlings,  the  blue-and-mauve 
Rollers  (E7irystomus  and  Coracias),  the  brilliant-coloured  Tro- 
gons  (H apalo  derma  narina  and  H.  rufiventris ),  the  golden, 
mauve,  or  copper-coloured  Cuckoos,  the  scarlet  and  sea-blue 
Bee-eaters,  and  iridescent  Tree  Hoopoes  of  tropical  Africa. 
The  beautiful  Ground  Thrush  (Pitta)  extends  its  range  right 

1 Remarques  sur  V Ornithologie  de  V Etat Independant du  Congo , by  Dr.  Alphonse 
Dubois. 

2 Except  perhaps  in  the  extreme  south  and  south-east,  where  there  may  be  a 
form  of  Otogyps. 


928  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

across  the  Congo  from  the  Atlantic  coast  to  Tanganyika.  The 
Hornbills  include,  besides  the  smaller  red-beaked  species  of 
Lophoceros , the  White-crested  Hornbill  (Ortho tophus)  and  the 
Black  Hornbill  ( Ceratogymna )/  and  also  four  species  of  black- 
and-white  Bycanistes.  As  regards  Turacos,  every  genus  is 
represented,  including  the  gorgeous  Musophaga  rosscz ,1 2  and  the 
large  blue  Corytheola  cristata.  There  are  four  fine  Eagle-Owls, 
and  the  Parrot  order  is  represented  by  a love-bird,  by  three 
species  of  green-and-grey  parrots  ( Poeocephalus ),  and  most  of 
all,  the  omnipresent  Grey  Parrot,  almost  the  typical  bird  of 
the  Congo  region,  found  everywhere  except  in  the  extreme 
south-east.3  In  the  south-western  portions  of  the  Congo  basin 
the  Grey  Parrot  is  in  process  of  forming  a new  species — the 
“ King  Parrot  ” of  commerce — in  which  the  plumage  is  gradu- 
ally becoming  pink  or  scarlet  all  over.  The  common  type  of 
Grey  Parrot  throughout  the  Congo  basin  tends  to  be  a much 
lighter,  whitish  grey  in  general  plumage  than  is  the  case  with 
the  more  purplish-grey  parrots  of  the  Gold  Coast,  Niger,  and 
Cameroons. 

With  regard  to  the  Reptiles  of  the  Congo,  the  poisonous 
snakes  include  many  types  that  are  common  to  the  rest  of 
West  Africa  (seven  of  which  were  illustrated  in  my  work  on 
Liberia).  The  genera  Naja  (cobras),  Dendraspis  (tree  cobras), 
Causus  (Cape  vipers),  Bitis  (puff-adders),  Atheris  (tree  vipers), 
and  Atractaspis  (egg-laying  vipers)  are  all  represented,  the 
last  named  by  fourteen  species.  Allusion  has  already  been 
made  to  the  large  size  of  the  Pythons.  The  red-headed 
Agama  lizard  is  a common  sight  on  the  Wrest  Congo  coast, 
but  does  not  seem  to  be  much  in  evidence  in  the  interior. 
The  large  Monitor  lizards  are  everywhere  abundant  wherever 
there  is  water,  and  their  flesh  is  much  appreciated  by  the 
natives.  The  burrowing  limbless  worm -like  Amphisboena 
exists  in  Western  Congoland  and  perhaps  elsewhere.  The 
Chameleons  of  the  Congo  have  as  yet  been  but  little  studied. 
They  belong  to  the  genera  Chamceleon  (with  perhaps  ten  or 
eleven  known  species)  and  Rhampholeon  (a  dwarf  type  of  two 
or  more  species).  There  are  no  doubt  additional  species  of 
both  genera4  not  as  yet  described  and  named.  The  order 

1 Illustrated  in  my  work  on  Liberia. 

2 Illustrated  in  my  Uganda  Protectorate.  3 It  extends  to  Lake  Mweru. 

4 The  identified  species  of  Chameleon  appear  to  be  (on  the  north-east)  Ch. 

Icevigatus , Ch.  jacksoni , Ch.  dilepis  (all  over  Congoland),  Ch.  bitceniatus,  Ch.  elliotti , 
Ch.  sphceropholis,  Ch.  xenorhinus ; and  on  the  west,  Ch.  gracilis,  Ch.  qnilensis ; per- 
haps also  Ch.  senega/ensis  on  the  far  north. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES  929 

of  the  Tortoises  and  Turtles  is  represented  (besides  land  tor- 
toises, Testudo  and  Cinyxis ) by  fresh-water  forms  of  the  follow- 
ing genera  : Pelomedusa  and  Sternothcerus  (side-necked  tor- 
toises) and  Trionyx  (the  soft-shelled  river  turtles).  These  last 
are  probably  alluded  to  by  Chevalier  in  his  work  L Afrique 
Centrale  Frangaise , in  which  he  states  that  in  the  streams 
on  the  northern  borderland  of  the  Mubangi  basin  there  is  a 
web-footed,  flattened  turtle  with  a soft  carapace,  brown  above 
and  blush  pink  below.  This  creature,  known  to  the  Sango  as 
Neko  and  the  Banziri  as  Kunda , is  described  as  being  ex- 
cellent for  eating  purposes.  Water  tortoises  of  different  kinds 
enter  much  into  the  folklore  of  the  Congo. 

As  to  the  Crocodiles,  the  common  African  form  ( Crocodilus 


483.  MAN-EATING  CROCODILE  (C.  NILOTICUS)  KILLED  AT  BOPOTO  {v.  P.  494) 

niloticus ) is  found  all  over  the  Congo  basin  in  rivers  of  any 
size.  In  the  main  Congo,  as  far  east  as  Stanley  Falls  and 
perhaps  beyond,  there  also  exists  the  Slender-snouted  Crocodile 
(C.  cataphr actus),  and  in  the  Mubangi  (if  not  also  elsewhere  in 
North  Congoland)  the  Short-headed  Crocodile  ( Osteolcemus ). 
This  small  black  crocodile,  the  range  of  which  seems  to  extend 
along  the  northern  Equatorial  forest  belt  from  Liberia  to  the 
upper  Ituri,  is  said  to  be  much  appreciated  by  the  negroes  of 
the  Mubangi  as  an  article  of  food,  and  even  to  be  specially  bred 
by  them  in  enclosed  areas. 

The  large  hillocks  of  the  termite  not  only  harbour  limbless 
lizards,  snakes,  and  huge  blue  earth-worms,  but  also  worm-like 
Amphibians.  These  are  members  of  the  Cceciliidce,  burrowing 
amphibians,  without  limbs,  and  with  eyes  reduced  to  a small,  sight- 
less vestige.  From  under  the  place  where  the  eye  should  be 

11. — 2 F 


930  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

grows  out  a short  tentacle,  which  enables  the  Caeciliid  to  feel  its 
way  about.  The  skin  of  these  creatures  is  marked  with  a large 
number  of  rings  or  folds,  giving  them  additionally  a worm- 
like aspect.  In  colour  they  are  a pale  brownish  pink,  in  length 
about  eight  inches  to  a foot,  and  very  slender  and  uniform 
in  thickness  ; the  skin  is  slimy  and  viscous  with  exudations. 
The  genera  of  these  blind,  limbless  amphibians  represented  in 
the  Congo  basin  are  probably  Urcetyphlus , Hypogeophis , and 
Geotrypetes. 

The  Frogs  and  Toads  of  the  Congo  basin  have  been  most 
imperfectly  studied  so  far.  It  is  possible  that  the  remarkable 
“hairy”  frog  ( Trichobatrachus ) and  Gampsosteonyx  (a  frog  with 
unwebbed  toes  ending  in  sharp  bony  claws)  of  the  South  Came- 
roons  hinterland  may  also  exist  in  the  north-western  basin  of 
the  Congo.  In  Trichobatrachus  the  flanks  and  thighs  are 
covered  with  a fringe  of  blackish  filaments  which  resemble  hair 
or  bristles  in  appearance,  but  are  probably  only  a development 
of  the  papillae  of  the  skin. 

There  are  no  true  “tree  frogs”  of  the  Hylidce  family  (of 
Australia,  Europe,  East  Asia,  and  America)  in  Africa  (except 
Mauretania).  Their  place  is  taken  in  the  Congo  forests  by 
arboreal,  Ranine  frogs  of  the  genera  Chiro7nantis  and  perhaps 
Hylambates  and  Cornufer.  A species  of  the  last-named  frog 
exists  in  the  Cameroons  and  the  type  may  extend  to  Western 
Congoland. 

The  large  bull-frogs  so  frequently  seen  and  heard  in 
Western  and  Central  Congoland,  the  eating  of  which  is  often 
the  sorry  privilege  of  the  women,  belong  probably  to  the 
multiform  genus  Rana , of  which  at  least  four  species  have 
been  identified  (there  are  no  doubt  numerous  species  awaiting 
identification)  in  Congoland— probably  many  more. 

Other  Ranine  frogs  belong  to  the  genera  Rappia,  Chiro- 
mantist Cassina,  HylambateSt  Megalixalus , Phrynobatrachus, 
Arthroleptis.  Of  the  true  toads,  Bufo , there  are  at  least 
three  species ; and  of  the  narrow-mouthed,  ant-eating  toads 
(. Engystomatidce ) three  genera  : Breviceps , Hemisus , Phryno- 
mantis. 

One  or  more  species  of  the  Xenopus  genus  of  the  aquatic, 
tongueless  frogs — wholly  aquatic  in  their  existence — may  often 
be  seen  floating  amongst  the  water  vegetation  on  the  surface 
of  still  pools  and  backwaters.  In  the  northern  forest  belt 
of  the  Congo  basin  there  is  a second  genus,  Aglossa,  sub- 
order Hymenochirus.  This  is  very  small — only  about  inches 
long,  and  an  uniform  olive-brown  in  colour. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


93 1 


The  Fish  of  the  Congo  basin  have  been  thoroughly  described 
by  Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger  of  the  British  Museum,  his  work 
being  based  on  the  researches  of  the  Congo  State  officials  and 
of  the  Baptist  missionaries  Grenfell,  Bentley,  and  J.  H.  Weeks. 
These  researches  have  recently  been  added  to  by  the  results  of 
the  French  scientific  mission — Congo-Lake  Chad — conducted 
by  M.  Auguste  Chevalier.1 

Mr.  G.  A.  Boulenger,  in  his  classification  of  African  fresh- 
water fish,  defines  (amongst  other  divisions)  a Megapotamian 2 
region  which  would  include  all  tropical  Africa  from  the  southern 
edge  of  the  Sahara  to  the  southern  limits  of  the  Zambezi  basin, 
with  the  exception  of  Abyssinia  and  North-Eastern  Africa. 


484.  POLYPTERUS  WEEKSII,  DISCOVERED  BY  REV.  J.  H.  WEEKS,  B.M.S. 

He  subdivides  “ Megapotamia  ” into  the  Nile-Niger,  the  Congo- 
Tanganyika,  and  the  Zambezi- Nyasa  subregions.  The  pre- 
sent distribution  of  fresh-water  fish  in  Megapotamian  Africa 
would  seem  to  indicate  that  there  was  in  the  early  part  of  the 
Tertiary  Epoch  a vast  sea  covering  nearly  all  Africa  between 
the  northern  basins  of  the  Congo  and  Niger  and  the  regions 
bordering  on  the  Mediterranean.  This  sea  possibly  flowed 
continuously  across  Arabia  to  India.  It  was  no  doubt  a shallow 
sea,  and  gradually  shrank  into  separate  lakes  of  brackish  or 
fresh  water,  and  through  these  slow  changes  the  fish  it  con- 
tained were  gradually  evolved  into  fresh-water  forms.  At  that 

1 LAfrique  Centrale  Frangaise,  1908.  Boulenger’ s work  between  1898  and  1902 
has  been  issued  in  the  Annales  du  Musee  du  Congo.  Also,  1901,  as  Les  poissons  du 
Bassm  du  Congo  (Brussels).  The  same  authority  summed  up  very  thoroughly  the 
main  features  of  fresh-water  fish  distribution  in  Africa  in  his  Address  to  the  Zoological 
Section  of  the  British  Association  for  the  Advancement  of  Science  in  1905. 

2 This  happily  chosen  term  is  due  to  Dr.  P.  L.  Sclater. 


932  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

time  no  doubt  the  Saharan  sea,  of  which  Lake  Chad  is  the  last 
fragment,  communicated  with  the  vast  fresh-water  lake  of  the 
central  Congo  across  the  low  water-parting  of  the  Mubangi 
watershed.  But  having  stocked  this  region  with  fresh-water 
fish,  the  water  communication  must  have  been  cut  off,  the 
Congo  lake  probably  remaining  isolated  (even  from  Tangan- 
yika) for  a long  period,  until  it  forced  an  outlet  to  the  Atlantic 
Ocean  through  the  Crystal  Mountains. 

The  fish  fauna  of  Tanganyika,  though  that  lake  belongs 
hydrographically  to  the  Congo  basin,  is  still  of  a puzzling 
character  as  regards  its  affinities.  In  fact,  the  riddle  of  Tan- 
ganyika is  not  yet  solved.  The  Belgian  geologist  Dr.  Cornet 


485.  POLYPTERUS  ORNATIPINNIS  (COLLECTED  BY  THE  REV.  J.  H.  WEEKS) 


believes  Tanganyika  to  be  no  older  than  the  Lower  Miocene 
Period.  It  may  even  have  communicated  northwards  along 
the  Albertine  Rift  valley  with  the  Victoria  Nyanza,  and  have 
shared  with  that  lake  a fish  fauna  not  in  direct  communication 
with  that  of  the  Nile,  Lake  Rudolph,  Lake  Chad,  and  the 
Niger.  Subsequently  the  volcanic  upheaval  which  cut  off  com- 
munication between  Tanganyika  and  Lake  Albert  Edward 
eventually  obliged  this  filled-up  Tanganyika  crevasse  to  force  an 
outlet  into  the  Lukuga  and  thence  to  the  Lualaba-Congo,  and 
no  doubt  ever  since  this  change  the  Congo  fish  have  been  find- 
ing their  way  up  the  Lukuga  into  Tanganyika. 

The  fish  of  South-East  Congoland — on  the  eastern  side  of 
the  Mitumba  mountain  range  (especially  the  fish  of  Mweru  and 
Bangweulu) — also  contribute  evidence  to  show,  as  Wauters 
imagined,  that  this  region  formerly  contained  an  independent 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


933 


chain  of  lakes,  which  may  or  may  not  have  found  their  outlet 
through  a mountain  gorge  into  Tanganyika,  but  which  did  not 
at  one  time  belong  to  the  Congo  system.  Their  fish  fauna  is 
poorer  than  that  of  the  Congo,  yet  richer  in  this  respect  than 
the  Zambezi-Nyasa  division. 

The  fresh-water  fish  of  Angola  belong  in  some  details  rather 
to  the  East  African  division  than  to  that  of  the  Congo  basin  ; 
just  as  the  mammals  and  birds  of  Central  and  Southern  Angola 
are  of  East  or  South  African  types. 

Amongst  the  most  remarkable  fish  of  the  Conoco  basin 
is  the  genus  Polypterus.  Mr.  Boulenger  thinks  that  the 
Polypteridce 1 originated  in  Mesozoic  times,  probably  in  North- 
Central  Africa,  in  the  Saharan  sea  above  referred  to. 
The  genus  Polypterus  within  the  Congo  basin  develops  six 
species  : P.  congicus , P.  delhezi , P.  ornatipinnis , P.  palmas , 
P.  weeksi , P.  retropinnis.  An  allied  genus,  Calamichthys , is 
found  on  the  north  Congo  coast , in  the  River  Chiluango.  The 
distribution  of  Polypterus  (so  far  as  it  can  be  determined  by  im- 
perfect researches)  is  very  peculiar.  It  is  entirely  absent  from 
the  Zambezi-Nyasa  region  and  also  from  Lake  Victoria.  There 
is  only  one  species  of  Polypterus  (P.  congicus')  in  Tanganyika 
(v.  p.  937),  and,  so  far,  none  at  all  has  been  discovered  in  Lake 
Mweru.  Elsewhere  a Polypterus  is  found  in  the  lower  Niger 
and  the  Cross  River,  at  Old  Calabar,  and  also  in  the  Chiluango 
River,  immediately  to  the  north  of  the  Congo  estuary,  but  not  (so 
far  as  present  research  goes)  in  the  intervening  regions  of  the 
Gaboon  and  Cameroons.  There  is  a Polypterus  in  the  rivers 
of  Liberia,  and  again  in  the  upper  Niger,  in  Lake  Chad,  and  in 
the  Nile  below  Lake  Albert  Nyanza. 

Another  interesting  type  of  fish  represented  in  the  Congo 
fauna  is  that  of  the  genus  Protopterus,  one  of  the  Lung-fishes, 
representatives  of  which  are  found  in  tropical  America,  Africa, 
and  Australia.  These  fishes  breathe  by  means  of  lungs,  and 
are  able  to  lead  an  almost  amphibian  life,  passing  the  dry  season 
of  the  year  encased  in  mud.  Very  specialized  in  some  direc- 
tions, they  are  probably  an  early  offshoot  from  the  Polypterid 
stem  that  led  upwards  to  the  pentadactyle  Amphibian.  There 
are  two  forms  of  Protopterus  in  the  Congo  basin — P.dolloi  (p.  244) 
and  P.  cethiopicus.  The  last  named  is  found  in  the  marshes  near 
Lake  Tanganyika,  but  apparently  not  actually  in  the  waters  of 

1 Even  to  persons  who  are  not  ichthyologists,  the  Polypteridce  must  be  a particu- 
larly interesting  group  of  fishes,  because  they  are  the  nearest  living  representatives  of 
a piscine  type  that  in  long  past  ages  was  developing  in  the  direction  of  an  amphibian 
five-toed  creature  ; which  was  to  leave  the  water  and  lay  the  foundation  of  that 
marvellous  development  of  land-vertebrates  of  which  man  is  the  culmination. 


934  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

that  lake.  Protopterus  cethiopicus  is  also  a denizen  of  the 
Victoria  Nyanza,  and  bulks  so  largely  in  the  life  of  the  natives 
from  its  qualities  as  a food  that  it  has  been  made  by  them  one 
of  the  totems  of  their  tribes.  There  is  no  Protopterus  in  Lake 
Nyasa,  nor  in  the  Zambezi,  but  this  fish  is  found  in  the  upper 
and  lower  Niger,  and  in  nearly  all  the  large  rivers  of  the  Guinea 
Coast,  from  the  Gambia  to  the  Cameroons  and  Gaboon. 

The  Congo  basin  is  especially  rich  in  fish  of  the  families 
Mormyridcz  ( vide  illustration  p.  349),  Characinidce , Siluridcz , 
Cichlidcz ,*  and  Mastacembelidcz  (p.  784). 

Attention  has  already  been  drawn  to  the  large  and  fierce 
Hydrocyon  goliath  {vide  p.  615),  which  is  such  good  eating  ; to 


486.  TETRODON  MBU,  A HANDSOMELY  MARKED  FISH  OF  THE  UPPER  CONGO 
AND  MUBANGI,  ABOUT  20  INCHES  LONG 


the  Eutropius  laticeps  (p.  168),  which  (according  to  the  natives) 
grows  to  a very  considerable  size  in  Lake  Leopold  II  [this  fish 
has  developed  a curious  twist  of  the  body,  which  gives  it  the 
appearance  of  being  upside  down]  ; to  the  Citharinus  genus 
(p.  178),  members  of  which  form  an  important  staple  of  food  on 
the  Upper  Congo  (C.  gibbosus  is  very  broad,  and  becomes  a 
sort  of  “ sunfish  ” in  size  and  appearance)  ; to  the  Gnathonemus 
ibis , a Mormyrid  with  the  snout  bent  into  an  ibis-like  beak  ;1 2  to 
the  handsomely  marked  Ckrysicktkys,  Synodontis , and  Masta- 
cembelus  fishes  (. Synodontis  offers  numerous  examples  of  bold 
coloration).  In  addition  to  these — from  the  aesthetic  point  of 
view — should  be  instanced  the  very  prettily  marked  Tetrodon 

1 These  are  developed  to  an  extraordinary  extent  in  Tanganyika. 

2 This  group  of  fish  (. Mormyridcz ) assumes  such  remarkable  head  resemblances 
to  birds  and  beasts  that,  being  represented  in  the  Nile,  it  attracted  the  attention  of 
the  ancient  Egyptians,  and  some  of  its  species  are  depicted  on  Egyptian  monuments. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


935 


mbu  of  Western  Congoland,  the  spotted  and  striped  fish  of  the 
genera  Distichodus , Eugnathichthys , and  Neoborus , and  the 
slender,  lance-like  Belonoglanis.  The  Bagrus  genus  produces 
fish  of  very  large  size — six  to  eight  feet  in  length.  Pelmato- 
chromis  toeniatus  (p.  936)  is  a species  much  sought  after  as  an 
article  of  food. 

The  “ Climbing  Perches  ” — Anabas — are  represented  by 
seven  or  eight  species,  and  in  West  Africa,  as  in  Ceylon,  are 
remarkable  for  the  length  of  time  they  can  survive  absence 
from  water.  In  parts  of  West  Africa  the  natives  attribute  to 
the  Anabants  the  practice  of  leaving  pools  during  heavy  rain 
to  wriggle  through  the  wet  herbage. 

The  fish  of  Tanganyika  have  been  thoroughly  described 
and  illustrated  by  r 
Mr.  J.  E.  S. 

Moore  in  his  The 
Tanganyika  Prob- 
lem.3  Specially 
n oteworthy 
amongst  these  for 
size,  beauty,  or 
oddity  of  appear- 
ance are  Bathy- 
bates  per  ox,  a yel- 
low-and-grey  fish 
with  enormous 
eyes  and  sharp 
teeth  ; the  exqui- 
sitely coloured 
Tilapia  rubropunctata ; the  remarkable  Tilapia  labiata , with 
enormous  everted  lips  ; the  handsomely  marked  Ectodus  fishes 
and  Paratilapia  furcifer , with  greatly  prolonged  ventral  fins. 

The  Invertebrates  of  the  Congo  basin  have  been  as  yet  so 
insufficiently  studied  that  there  is  not  enough  material  on  which 
to  comment  at  any  length.  No  one  who  travels  through  this 
region  can  fail  to  notice  the  large  Achatina  snail  shells.  Some 
of  these  become  blanched  to  a perfect  white,  and  are  then 
favoured  by  the  natives  as  ornaments.  Others  remain  prettily 
striped  with  dark  red  over  yellowish  grey.  Some  of  the  shells 
of  the  genera  Buliminus , Veronicella,  Ennea,  Helix , Lanistes , 
Bithoceras , and  Melania  are  very  beautiful  ; in  fact,  any  one 
wishing  to  derive  a general  impression  of  the  aesthetic  beauty  of 
1 Hurst  and  Blackett,  1902. 


7.  ANABAS  WEEKSII,  DISCOVERED  BY  REV.  J.  H.  WEEKS 
This  fish  be'ongs  to  the  family  of  the  climbing  perches  (of  Ceylon). 


936  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  land  mollusca  of  the  Congo  need  only  visit  the  magnificent 
conchological  collections  in  the  Natural  History  Museum  of 
South  Kensington.  In  the  rivers  are  many  types  of  fresh-water 
bivalves  ( Unio , /Etheria , Spcitha , Mutila , Mutihna , Phodon , 
etc.). . Some  of  these,  especially  those  of  the  genus  AEtheria, 
are  eaten  by  the  natives.  The  last  named  are  the  “ fresh- 
water oysters”  so  often  alluded  to  by  Grenfell  and  other  Euro- 
pean explorers. 

There  are  land-crabs  belonging  to  the  widespread  genus 
Potcimon  (quoted  as  Potamonautes  by  Chevalier) — two  species 
in  Tanganyika,  one  or  more  in  the  Mubangi  and  main  Upper 
Congo  ; and  J.  E.  S.  Moore  discovered  two  peculiar  deep-water 


crabs  in  Tan- 
ganyika — Platy- 
thelphusa  arm  at  a 
P.  ( Limno - 
\ 'phusa ) macu- 


lata.  Dr.  W.  A. 


Cunnington  found 
a third  species  in 
Tanganyika,  P. 
conculcata } The 
fresh-water  cray- 
fish or  prawns  of 
the  Lower  and 
Upper  Congo  be- 
long to  the  genera 
Palczmon  and 
Caridina . In  Tan- 


488.  PELMATOCHROMIS  TVENIATUS,  A FISH  OF  THE 
UPPER  CONGO,  COLLECTED  BY  REV.  J.  H.  WEEKS 


ganyika  Moore  found  two  deep-water  prawns,  a Palczmon  and 
a Limno  caridina. 

The  Spiders  remain  quite  undescribed,  but  so  far  as  a super- 
ficial observation  goes  they  include  all  the  well-known  types  of 
West  Africa,  especially  examples  of  the  genera  Titanodamen , 
Phoncyusa , Solpuga , Anoploscelus , Lycosa , Palystes , Nephila , 
Araneus , Gasteracantka , Aranczthra , and  Heteropoda.  There 
are  a good  many  ticks,  some  of  them  poisonous.  In  the  north- 

1 Dr.  Cunnington  (P.Z.S.,  March  1907)  considers  that  the  Brachyurous 
Crustacea — crabs — of  Tanganyika  testify  to  the  long  isolation  of  that  lake,  and  lend 
some  colour  to  Moore’s  claim  that  Tanganyika  had  an  ancient  connection  with  the 
sea.  This  theory  is,  however,  disputed  by  other  authorities  on  other  grounds. 
Moore’s  discovery  of  the  genus  of  “deep-sea”  crabs  in  Tanganyika  was  in  any  case 
remarkable.  Platythelphusa , so  far  as  we  know,  is  restricted  in  its  distribution  to  the 
waters  of  Tanganyika,  and  has  not  been  found  as  yet  in  any  other  lake.  Its  nearest 
relations,  according  to  Dr.  Cunnington,  are  with  the  sub-genera  Hydrothelphusa  and 
Parathelphusa  of  the  Potamon  group  (West  and  East  African  coasts). 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


937 


west  and  the  extreme  south  are  the  dreaded  ticks  (?  Argas 
genus)  which  inoculate  man  with  the  yaws  disease  and  relapsing 
fever.  The  huge  Pandinus  scorpions,  grimly  coloured  in  a sort 
of  phosphorescent  blue  and  sickly  yellow — six  inches  long,  and 
with  a terrible  sting — abound  in  all  the  forest  regions,  together 
with  eight-inch-long  centipedes  ( Scolopendra , also  with  a very 
poisonous  sting),  and  huge,  harmless  millipedes  {lulus). 

As  to  the  Insect  class,  it  probably  reaches  its  most  ex- 
travagant African  development  within  the  Congo  basin.  This 


£. 

489.  (i)  POLYPTERUS  CONGICUS,  THE  POLYPTERID  OF  TANGANYIKA];  ALSO 
FOUND  IN  THE  UPPER  AND  LOWER  CONGO  BY  THE  LATE  DR.  HOLMAN 
BENTLEY,  B.M.S.  (AMONG  OTHERS) 

(2)  BARILIUS  WEEKSII,  A SMALL  FISH  OF  THE  UPPER  CONGO  DISCOVERED 
BY  THE  REV.  J.  H.  WEEKS 

vast  subject  can  only  be  treated  quite  perfunctorily  here.  Allu- 
sions to  insects  which  affect  the  life  of  man  and  beast  in  Congo- 
land  are  scattered  through  various  chapters. 

Ant-lions  (. Palpares , Cymothales , Tomathe.res ),  in  the  perfect 
stage  like  stupid  dragon-flies,  may  be  often  seen  on  the  walls  of 
houses,  trunks  of  trees,  or  other  bare  surfaces.  Termites  or 
“ white-ants  ” are  one  of  the  curses  of  the  whole  Congo  region  in 
their  attacks  on  the  white  man’s  timber  and  stores,  but  as  Professor 
Drummond  pointed  out,  they  perform  no  doubt  a useful  service 
in  assimilating  and  turning  into  mould  the  fallen  trees  or  rotten 

o o 


938  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

branches  of  the  forest,  and  thus  improving  the  surface  soil. 
They  are  represented  in  the  Congo  by  no  doubt  a large  number 
of  species  and  several  genera.  So  far,  Termes  and  Eutermes 
have  been  recorded,  together  with  the  definite  species  of 
Termes  natalensis , T.  bellicosus , T.  mordax , and  Eutermes 
fungifaber . The  form  of  the  ant-hills  varies  proportionately, 
and  corresponds  with  the  habitats  and  localities  of  these  social 
Neuroptera.  In  the  far  north  of  the  Congo  basin  the  dwellings 
of  the  termites  bear  a fantastic  resemblance  to  native  huts, 
especially  those  of  the  extinguisher  variety.  They  are  tall, 
and  not  much  broader  at  the  base  than  at  the  summit,  but  the 
top  is  nearly  always  capped  by  a roof  of  wide-spreading  eaves. 
The  smaller  forms  of  this  type  of  ant-hill  look  like  huge  fungi. 
This  also  is  the  type  with  the  round,  projecting  cap — found  in 
much  of  the  forest  belt ; but  where  the  soil  is  of  sandstone  or 
red  laterite  and  the  country  is  park-like  (naturally,  or  by  human 
agency),  the  ant-hills  are  of  vast  bulk,  and  rise  to  a sharp 
pinnacle  at  the  top  without  any  roof  or  cap.  This  is  the 
characteristic  type  over  all  the  southern  half  of  the  Congo 
basin.  Along  the  upper  Mubangi,  the  lofty  ant-hills,  without  a 
cap,  are  columnar  in  shape,  and  in  appearance  recall  those  of 
the  arid  regions  of  Eastern  Equatorial  Africa,  illustrated  in  my 
work  on  the  Uganda  Protectorate. 

The  Orthopterous  group  of  insects  produces  in  the  Congo 
basin  many  genera  and  species  of  cockroaches  (Blattidce),  in- 
cluding the  two  horrible  forms  introduced  from  tropical  America 
and  Asia  and  Rhyparobia  maderce , which  European  or  Arab  civi- 
lization has  carried  far  and  wide  into  the  Congo  basin.  But  the 
indigenous  cockroaches  are  not  only  unobjectionable  in  their 
habits,  but  are  sometimes  very  beautifully  coloured  and  marked. 

The  Mantidce  are  represented  by  some  very  striking  forms,1 
several  of  which  may  be  as  much  as  four  inches  in  length. 
They  are  usually  a bright  green,  but  some  species  develop  a 
splendid  ocellus  of  black  and  pink  on  the  dorsal  surface  of  the 
wings,  and  one  example  from  Tanganyika  resembles  a gorgeous 
flower  in  appearance — rose  colour,  white,  and  green — a wonder- 
ful effort  of  imitation. 

Some  of  the  Phasmidcz — Stick  Insects — ( Cyphocrania , 
Bacillus , Palophus ) are  eight  inches  in  length,  and  their 
mimicry  of  twigs  or  of  grass  stems  is  truly  remarkable. 

Locusts  and  grasshoppers  swarm,  but  it  is  very  rare  to  hear 
of  any  devastating  plague  of  migratory  locusts  ( Pachytylus 

1 Of  the  following  genera  : Sfthodromantis , Mantis,  Miomantis,  Harp  ax, 
Tenodera , and  Popa. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


939 


migratorioides ),  except  in  the  extreme  east,  south,  and  north. 
Nevertheless,  there  can  be  minor  troubles  caused  by  sudden 
local  increases  of  locusts,  such  as  that  of  the  type  illustrated  on 
page  233.  This  last  form  ( Cyrtacanthacris ),  as  already  related, 
was  picked  up  by  a missionary  in  the  act  of  eating  a mouse  which 
it  had  caught  between  its  legs.  It  is  supposed  that  hunger  may 
have  forced  it  to  this  act,  or  the  seizure  may  have  been  acci- 
dental and  automatic  ; but  apparently  the  locust  had  begun  to 
devour  the  mouse's  ear.1  The  far  less  noxious  and  repulsive 
“green  grasshoppers”  (P has gonur idee)  are  very  abundant. 
Amongst  the  genera  identified  are  Arantia , Giyllacris , Eu- 
gaster , Zabulius,  Aneedopoda,  and  Dolichopoda.  The  pre- 
daceous crickets  (Gryllidee)  are  very  common,  and  excite  a 
feeling  of  loathing  not  only  in  the  European,  but  in  the  native. 
Some  species  are  exceedingly  predatory  and  carnivorous.  They 
tear  to  pieces  and  devour  large  insects  with  a quite  impressive 
rapacity. 

As  regards  Hymenoptera , something  has  already  been  said 
in  this  book  about  the  species  of  bee  found  in  the  Nyamnyam 
country  ip  Apis  melifica  ligustica?).  In  Northern  Congoland 
M.  Chevalier  encountered  Apis  melifica  var.  fasciata , an 
African  variety  of  the  domestic  honey-bee.  This  insect  has 
also  been  recorded  from  the  east  and  south  of  the  Congo  basin, 
and  is  no  doubt  by  now  pretty  widely  distributed,  living,  how- 
ever, almost  entirely  a wild  life.  There  are  forms  of  Melipona 
and  of  Trigona — social,  very  small  “ stingless  ” 2 bees,  building 
frequently  in  or  near  native  villages,  and  producing  honey  which 
is  disagreeably  bitter.  Large,  hairy,  golden-brown  “carpenter” 
bees  are  probably  of  the  genus  Xylocopa.  Of  wasps,  there  are 
several  species  of  Polistes  and  of  Belonogaster , the  last-named 
genus  being  usually  of  a glossy  grey  in  colour,  with  a most 
formidable,  almost  deadly,  sting.  The  Mason-Wasps  ( Sphegidce ) 
are  represented  by  the  genera  Eumenes  and  PelopeeiLS,  and  no 
doubt  by  other  forms.  They  are  amongst  the  most  prominent 
insects  in  Congoland.  Every  one  who  has  even  paid  a short 
visit  to  that  region  remembers  the  gaudy  black-and-yellow, 
booming  wasps  (of  benign  character  towards  human  beings) 
which  attempt  to  build  clay  receptacles  against  the  walls  of 
houses,  the  backs  of  books,  or  the  under-side  of  shelves — clay 
dwellings  to  which  they  transport  torpid  grubs  or  caterpillars, 

1 The  Rev.  Lawson  Forfeitt  informs  me  that  when  all  vegetation  has  been 
devoured  locusts  have  been  seen  eating  spiders. 

2 More  correctly  “ non-stinging,”  according  to  Mr.  David  Sharp  ( Insects , Cam- 
bridge Natural  History,  Vol.  II). 


940  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

and  in  which  they  lay  an  egg,  so  that  their  larva  may  feed  on 
the  imprisoned  grub  as  it  grows  to  maturity.  Owing  to  the 
noise  they  make  and  the  nests  they  build,  they  are  a mild 
nuisance  to  the  resident  in  Congoland,  but  M.  Chevalier 
states  that  they  are  followed  about  by  another  Hymenopter, 
brilliantly  coloured  blue,  yellow,  and  black — Chrysis  stil- 
boides — which  adds  its  egg,  cuckoo-like,  to  that  of  the 
Eumenes.  The  larva  of  the  Chrysis  devours  that  of  the 
Mason-Wasp. 

There  are  also  many  beautiful  ichneumon  “flies,”  of  the 
genera  Cryptus , Faidherbia , and  Anaphe. 

Every  one  who  has  travelled  or  resided  in  Congoland  has 
been  compelled  to  take  notice — whether  a naturalist  or  not 
— of  one  of  the  plagues  of  that  region  and  of  the  rest  of  tropical 
Africa — the  Ants.  These  insects — as  regards  their  Congo  distri- 
bution — have  been  as  yet  but  little  studied.  It  is  difficult  for 
the  passing  explorer  to  obtain  with  certainty  specimens  of 
workers  and  perfect  males  and  females  of  the  same  species.  As 
a rule  the  worker  only  is  in  evidence.  The  queen  ant  or  the 
drone  will  only  emerge  from  the  nest  at  certain  seasons,  may  be 
utterly  unlike  the  worker  in  appearance,  and  of  course  will  be 
winged. 

In  my  work  on  Liberia  I have  pointed  out  that  the 
real  lord  of  the  forest  is  not  the  elephant,  leopard,  or  gorilla,  but 
the  Driver  Ant.  The  use  of  fire-arms  will  soon  scare  away  the 
hostile  mammal,  but  much  more  elaborate  measures  are  required 
to  rid  the  district  of  the  Driver  Ants.  These  fierce  swarms  of 
migrating  black  ants  apparently  belong  either  to  the  genus 
Anomma  or  Dorylus , but  classification  on  this  head  is  at  present 
most  faulty,  partly  from  the  extreme  difficulty  of  finding  the 
central  nest  or  home  of  these  swarms.  The  soldier  and  the 
ordinary  worker,  together  with  the  pupae  of  the  young,  are  of 
course  easily  obtained,  but  the  perfect  male  and  female  can  only 
be  identified  by  the  discovery  of  the  nest.  So  far  as  my  own 
small  researches  go,  I have  never  been  able  to  discover  a settled 
home  of  these  Driver  Ants,  nor  have  I encountered  any 
explorer  or  naturalist  who  has  done  so.  The  natives  assert 
that  these  creatures  are  always  on  the  move.  They  make 
regular  beaten  tracks,  like  small  roads.  But  these  tracks  are 
very  often  empty,  may  be  empty  for  weeks  ; then  they  are 
once  more  swarming  : or  the  ants  may  leave  the  track  and 
make  a new  one.  Their  attacks  are  so  vicious,  and  they  make 
these  journeys  through  such  dense  bush  or  jungle,  that  I have 
found  it  impossible  to  trace  a swarm  more  than  a mile,  back  to 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


94 1 

its  point  of  departure  ; and  then  I have  still  found  the  ants 
hurrying  onwards. 

M.  Chevalier  in  his  recent  journeys  through  the  northern 
part  of  the  Congo  basin  complains  very  much  of  the  CEcophyila 
maragdina , a large,  reddish-yellow  ant,  which  constructs  its  nest 
by  sticking  together  into  a kind  of  ball  a number  of  green  leaves 
on  the  trees  it  frequents.  (The  present  writer  recalls  having 
seen  these  rounded  leaf-bundles  on  the  twigs  of  shrubs  and  trees 
overhanging  the  waterside.)  At  the  least  jar  or  discernible 
approach  of  an  unwitting  human,  the  worker  ants  quit  the  nests 
and  run  towards  the  intruder,  or,  if  he  be  passing  underneath 
in  a canoe,  drop  on  to  his  body  and  fix  their  mandibles  into  his 
flesh,  though  their  bite  is  not  particularly  painful.  But  what  is 
most  disgusting  about  them  is  the  nauseating  odour  they  diffuse 
when  crushed. 

There  is  a ground-dwelling  ant  of  large  size  which  seems  to 
go  about  in  pairs  or  solitary.  It  is  sometimes  over  an  inch  long, 
and  it  has  a black  or  grey  thorax  with  a grey  abdomen.  This 
is  possibly  Paltothyreus  pestilentius.  Apparently  they  are  able 
to  emit  at  will  this  foul  smell  (like  drains  at  their  very  worst), 
as  a means  of  defence ; but  if  by  accident  one  of  them  is 
crushed,  it  is  almost  necessary  to  leave  the  place  for  a time,  so 
sickening  is  the  diffused  odour.  These  stinking  ants  have 
been  noticed  by  the  present  writer  over  the  greater  part  of 
East  and  West  Africa,  and  they  are  such  a prominent  (and 
unpleasant)  feature  in  the  life  of  a resident  that  it  would  at 
any  rate  be  satisfactory  to  have  them  properly  identified  and 
named. 

In  the  Congo  region  there  are  very  small  black  ants, 
possibly  of  the  genus  Formica , that  inject  some  kind  of  poison 
as  they  bite  with  their  mandibles.  This  bite  causes  a very 
serious  swelling  of  the  part  affected,  that  may  last  for  several 
days. 

Another  type  of  tree-ant,  in  the  region  of  swampy  forests, 
builds  round,  black  nests  in  the  forks  of  trees,  about  the  size  of 
a man’s  head,  and  in  fact  looking  so  like  the  woolly  head  of  a 
negro  that  occasionally  the  present  writer  has  mistaken  them 
for  indications  of  men  hiding  in  the  trees. 

There  are  of  course  minute  yellow  ants  that  get  into  sugar 
and  most  forms  of  palatable  food. 

Amongst  Dipterous  insects,  the  gnats  (mosquitoes)  have 
already  been  alluded  to  as  being  in  some  cases  the  transmitting 
agents  of  deleterious  germs.  These,  so  far  as  they  have  been 
studied,  belong  to  nineteen  genera  including  Culex  but  not 


942  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


the  true  Anopheles  of  Europe  and  Asia.1  The  Anopheline 
type,  however,  is  strongly  represented  in  the  Congo  basin  by 
at  least  four  genera,  and  the  mosquitoes  belonging  to  this 
group  are  believed  to  transmit  to  human  beings,  not  only  the 
malarial  parasite,  but  also  filarial  worms  (. Filariasis ).  This 
malady  is  also  conveyed  to  the  human  system  by  the  Mansonia 
genus  and  by  at  least  one  species  of  Culex  ( C. . fatigans').  This 
last  may,  in  addition,  be  an  agency  for  the  spread  of  Dengue 
fever,  which  is  causing  such  ravages  in  Western  and  Central 
Congoland.  A species  of  Stegomyia  carries  the  germs  of 
Yellow  fever  in  the  coast-lands  of  Senegambia,  and  perhaps 
also  in  tropical  America.  In  the  Congo  basin  there  is  at 
present  no  yellow-fever  infection,  but  no  doubt  the  Devil  of 
reactionary  Africa  provides  some  mischief  still  for  the  local 
Stegomyice  to  do,  and  the  species  of  this  genus  may  be  in 
Congoland  the  carriers  of  the  dreaded  Blackwater  fever.  The 
detestable  Simulium  damnosum  and  the  midges  of  the  genera 
Ceratopogon  and  Chironomus  have  been  mentioned  earlier 
in  this  book.  A curious  negative  feature  regarding  this  group 
in  Congoland  is  the  apparent  absence  of  the  Kungu  gnat, 
which  rises  in  cloud-like  swarms  at  certain  seasons  from  the 
waters  of  lakes  Nyasa  and  Victoria  Nyanza.  Mr.  E.  E. 
Austen,  of  the  British  Museum,  writes  as  follows  : — 

“ The  ‘ Kungu  ’ fly  of  Lake  Nyasa  was  said  by  Eaton  to  be  one  of  the 
Culicidae  with  a short  proboscis,  perhaps  allied  to  Corethra.  On  the 
other  hand,  from  a verbal  description  which  has  been  given  to  me, 
the  fly  which  is  made  into  cakes  on  Lake  Victoria  would  appear  to 
belong  to  the  family  Chironomidae,  and  perhaps  to  the  genus  Chironomus ; 
but  I fancy  that  other  insects  which  sometimes  occur  in  swarms,  such 
as  Culicidae  and  Ephemeridae,  may  also  enter  into  the  composition  of  the 
cakes  of  Lake  Victoria.  I have  not  heard  of  Kungu  flies  having  been 
recorded  from  Tanganyika.” 

Among  the  Gadflies  there  are  at  least  six  species  of 
Tabanus , several  of  Pangonia  and  also  of  Hcematopota. 

1 Mr.  E.  E.  Austen  has  kindly  supplied  me  with  the  names  of  the  nineteen 
genera  of  Congo  mosquitoes  [extended  research  will  probably  reveal  many  more] : — 

Culex. 


T aeniorhynchus. 

Mansonia. 

Melanoconion. 

,/Edeomyia. 

Mimomyia. 

N eomelanoconion. 

Anisochelomyia. 

Boycia. 


Toxorhynchites. 

Eretmapodites. 

Stegomyia. 


Scutomyia. 


Catageiomyia  (?). 
Duttonia. 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


943 


The  Flies  proper  ( Muscidce ) have  been  but  little  studied,  and 
there  is  practically  no  information  on  the  subject  available, 
but  the  species  of  Tse-tse  have  been  already  described  in 
chapter  XXII.  The  burrowing-flea  ( Sarcopsyllus ) introduced 
from  America  has  now  spread  over  the  whole  of  the  Congo 
basin.  Fleas  of  the  genus  Pulex  have  a somewhat  eccentric 
distribution.  They  are  a good  deal  absent  from  the  wet  forest 
area,  except  in  very  dirty  types  of  native  village.  They  are, 
however,  terribly  abundant  in  the  Arab  settlements,  or  wher- 
ever the  Arab  style  of  life  and  building  has  been  introduced. 
They  will  also  occur  in  the  most  unexpected  localities,  ap- 
parently quite  independent  of  the  presence  of  man,  as  in 
certain  caverns,  or  on  patches  of  sandy  soil.  No  doubt,  though 
quite  capable  of  biting  human  beings,  they  represent  different 
species  of  Pulex , attached  to  some  other  mammal.  I have 
sometimes  found  fleas  very  abundant  in  these  regions  in  the 
lairs  of  leopards  or  lions. 

The  Bugs  of  the  Congo  basin  and  of  tropical  Africa  are 
most  obvious  in  their  presence  on  the  vegetation,  and  no  doubt 
destroy  a great  many  plants  or  trees  by  their  attacks.  They 
are  often  brightly  coloured,  but  all  seem  to  possess  the  same 
nauseous  odour  that  is  associated  with  the  infamous  bed-bug. 
This  last  exists  only  too  numerously  in  the  regions  of  Western 
Congoland,  whither  it  has  been  conveyed  from  the  Portuguese 
settlements,  and  is  even  more  distressingly  abundant  in  the 
Arab  towns  of  the  Eastern  Province.  It  is  not  indigenous, 
and  the  stories  of  the  Portuguese  regarding  a very  poisonous 
type  of  native  bug  really  refer  to  the  ticks  that  cause  tick  fever, 
creatures  that  in  appearance  offer  a remarkable  resemblance  to 
the  noisome  insect. 

The  Cicadas  keep  up  an  incessant  concert  all  the  year 
round  of  shrill  chirping.  The  commonest  type  of  this  insect 
is  Pycna  limbata. 

As  to  Beetles  and  Butterflies,  they,  like  most  other  insect 
orders,  do  not  take  much  account  of  geographical  or  political 
limits  in  regard  to  the  Congo  basin.  There  is  an  almost  con- 
tinuous distribution  of  genera  and  even  species  along  the 
Equatorial  forest  belt,  from  Senegambia  on  the  west  to  the 
Nandi  Plateau  and  even  Kenia  and  Equatorial  East  Africa  on 
the  east.  North  of  that  there  is  the  Nigerian-Sudanian  belt, 
from  the  western  flanks  of  Abyssinia  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Senegal.  Angola  and  western  Congo  from  the  point  of  view 
of  beetles  and  butterflies  form  rather  a sub-province,  with 
relations  both  to  the  types  of  the  Equatorial  belt  and  those  of 


944  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

South-Central  Africa,  while  the  butterflies  and  beetles  of  South- 
Central  Congoland  are  very  much  like  those  of  the  Nyasa- 
Tanganyika  plateau,  and  even  of  Mozambique. 

The  most  prominent  type  of  beetle  in  the  eyes  of  the 
casual  visitor  to  the  Congo  is  the  magnificent  Ceratorrhina 
goliath , with  his  coloration  of  black,  white,  pale  green,  and 
rose  colour.  This  type  in  varying  forms  and  species  has 
attracted  the  attention  of  the  natives,  and  is  a £ood  deal  used 
in  their  medicine  and  sorcery.  There  are  many  other  beautiful 
Chafers  beside  the  goliath,  and  brilliant  violet  Carabids,  Fire- 
flies (. Diaphanes ),  brightly  coloured  Cantharids  ( Horia ),  and 
Buprestids,  of  which  perhaps  the  loveliest  are  of  the  genus 
Iridotenia. 

Some  idea  of  the  common  or  characteristic  types  of  butter- 
flies and  moths  of  the  Congo  basin  may  be  obtained  by  com- 
paring the  lists  of  these  insects  in  my  works  on  the  River 
Congo , Liberia , Uganda , and  British  Central  Africa . 

The  Earth-worms  of  the  Congo  probably  belong  to  the 
following  genera  : Nannodrihis,  Millsonia , Gordiodrilus,  Ben- 
hamia , Acanthodrilus , Endrilus,  Libyodrilus,  Stuhlmannia , and 
Alma.  Benhamia , of  the  forest  region,  is  represented  by  species 
as  large  as  a small  snake — say,  nearly  twelve  inches  long — of  a 
bright  verditer-blue  colour.  There  are  leeches  in  many  of  the 
Congo  rivers  and  in  stagnant  pools.  Apparently  they  belong 
to  the  genera  Hirudo , Limnatis , and  Hczmadipsa,  since 
leeches  of  those  types  are  present  in  other  parts  of  West  or 
Central  Africa. 

As  regards  the  jelly-fish,  sponges,  and  Polyzoa  of  Tan- 
ganyika, the  reader  who  wishes  to  study  the  Congo  fauna  in 
all  its  aspects  should  refer  to  the  writings  of  Messrs.  J.  E.  S. 
Moore,  W.  A.  Cunnington,  and  Charles  F.  Rousselet.  Mr. 
Moore’s  conclusions  have  in  some  degree  been  modified 
by  the  subsequent  discovery  in  Lake  Victoria  of  similar  quasi- 
marine organisms,  but  this  fact  does  not  detract  from  the 
great  value  of  his  precise  information  as  to  the  Medusae, 
Porifera,  and  Protozoa  of  Tanganyika  and  the  eastern  Congo 
basin.  There  are  apparently  three  distinct  sponges  in  the 
waters  of  Tanganyika — Spongilla  moorei , S.  bohniii , and  (per- 
haps) Potamolepis  weltneri.  In  the  waters  of  the  main  Congo 
there  is  a species  of  Potamolepis , and  at  least  one  species  of 
Spongilla  (S.  bohmii).  The  jelly-fish  of  Tanganyika  is  Limno- 
cnida  tanganyikce.  This,  however,  is  also  present  in  the  waters 
of  Lake  Victoria,  and  a Limnocnida  was  found  in  the  Niger 
by  the  late  J.  S.  Budgett.  Five  species  of  Polyzoa  are  also 


NATURAL  HISTORY  NOTES 


945 


found  in  that  lake,  of  which  perhaps  four  may  be  peculiar  to 
its  waters.  These  are  Arachnoidia  ray-lankesteri , Victorella 
symbiotica , Fredericella  cunningtoni,  Plumatella  tanganyikce , and 
P.  repens.  The  last  named  is  also  found  in  the  lakes  Victoria, 
Albert  Edward,  and  Albert  Nyanza.  The  genus  Fredericella 
is  found  in  the  Nile  delta  and  also  in  Natal,  and  the  other 
genera  are  of  world-wide  and  possibly  of  general  African 
distribution. 


Additional  Note. — On  page  922  a reference  was  made  to  the 
relatively  long  and  slender  tusks  of  the  Congo  elephant.  The  accom- 
panying illustration  by  the  Rev.  Lawson  Forfeitt  did  not  reach  me  in 
time  for  insertion  in  its  appropriate  place  on  p.  922.  In  this  photograph 
(which  was  taken  a good  many  years  ago  when  trade  in  ivory  was 
relatively  free  on  the  Upper  Congo)  a Bopoto  man  nearly  six  feet  in 
height  is  holding  up  a tusk  which  measured  about  seven  feet  along  the 
curve. 


490.  DUTCH  TRADER  PURCHASING  IVORY  AT  BUMANGI,  NORTHERN  CONGO. 

ABOUT  1890 


II. — 2 G 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 


NOTES  ON  FERNANDO  PO 

IT  might  be  of  use  to  the  readers  of  this  work  to  summarize  in  this 
chapter  information  collected  by  Baptist  missionaries1  and  others2 
regarding  the  island  of  Fernando  Po.  This  has  to  a great  extent 
been  omitted  from  the  commencement  of  the  book  in  order  not 
to  interrupt  too  much  the  course  of  the  narrative. 

This  oblong  mass  of  volcanic  mountains  is  about  thirty-six  miles 
at  its  greatest  length  and  thirty-one  at  its  extreme  width,  with  a circum- 
ference of  about  120  miles.  It  was  obviously  once  a peninsula  of  the 
Cameroons  volcanic  regions,  and  during  some  seismic  disturbance 
the  sea  broke  in  between  the  Fernando  Po  mountains  and  those  of 
the  Cameroons.  The  islands  and  islets  of  Ambas  Bay  (which  have 
crumbled  and  lessened  in  the  last  three  hundred  years)  are  a remains 
of  the  former  isthmus,  which  is  further  represented  by  a continuous 
ledge  about  thirty  miles  in  breadth,  still  connecting  Fernando  Po  with 
the  mainland,  under  a shallow  sea  of  from  200  to  290  feet  in  depth. 
On  either  side  of  this  ledge  the  depth  of  water  suddenly  increases  to 
6,000  feet ; and  between  Fernando  Po’s  southern  extremity  and  the 
sister  volcanic  islands  of  Principe  and  Sao  Thome  the  ocean  depths  are 
still  greater  (9,000  to  10,000  feet). 

The  interior  of  the  island  is  very  mountainous  [coast-belt  seamed 
with  many  rivulets  and  rather  swampy].  A long  chain  of  volcanic 
peaks  or  elevated  plateaux  extends  from  the  north-east  corner  to  the 

1 Dr.  Prince  and  the  Rev.  John  Clarke  in  the  ’forties  of  the  nineteenth  century  ; 
Alfred  Saker  in  the  ’fifties  ; George  Grenfell,  who  visited  the  island  at  intervals  be- 
tween 1875  and  1902,  and  who  left  a number  of  notes  scattered  over  his  journals  and 
private  letters,  and  references  to  whose  dealings  with  the  natives  of  Fernando  Po 
may  be  found  in  Baumann’s  work. 

2 Besides  the  above-mentioned  Baptist  missionaries,  Fernando  Po  has  been 
explored  for  various  purposes  by  the  following  authorities  : Louis  Fraser,  who  when 
a member  of  the  Niger  Expedition  visited  the  island  in  1841  and  made  a most  impor- 
tant collection  of  its  mammals  \Zoologica  Tyftica)  ; Sir  Richard  Burton,  who. was 
Consul  there  from  1859  to  1862  ; Gustav  Mann,  the  great  botanist,  still  living  in  1907, 
who  as  botanist  to  the  British  Niger  Expedition  of  1859  made  an  effective  and  con- 
clusive study  of  the  Fernandian  flora  (Sir  Joseph  Hooker  described  his  collections)  ; 
the  present  writer,  who  was  Acting  British  Consul  at  Fernando  Po,  1887-8  ; Dr. 
Osorio  ( Apuntes  de  un  Viaje , Spanish  Natural  History  Society,  1886) ; Oskar  Bau- 
mann, the  Austrian  traveller,  who  visited  the  island  in  1886  and  published  an  account 
at  Vienna  in  1887  (. Fernando  Po  ur.d  die  Bube ) ; Frank  Newton,  the  well-known 
Portuguese  naturalist  of  Oporto  (of  partly  English  descent),  who  explored  Fernando 
Po  in  1894  for  the  Lisbon  Museum,  and  whose  collections  were  fully  described  by 
Dr. 'Barbosa  de  Bocage  ; and  lastly,  in  1902,  Captain  Boyd  Alexander,  who  visited 
Fernando  Po  to  make  a collection  of  birds,  and  wrote  very  interestingly  on  the 
general  aspects  of  the  island  in  the  Ibis  of  1903. 

946 


947 


NOTES  ON  FERNANDO  PO 

south  centre.  Here  the  “ cordillera  ” meets  it,  coming  from  the  south- 
west. The  centre  of  the  northern  half  of  Fernando  Po  is  the  great 
mountain  of  Santa  Isabel  (Owasa  of  the  natives,  Clarence  Peak  of 
the  British),  which  would  seem  to  be  a dead  cone  rising  from  a worn- 
down  crater  of  weathered  basaltic  cliff's.  The  bottom  of  the  crater 
(filled  with  vegetation  and  a little  water)  is  515  feet  below  the  summit 
of  the  peak. 

Pico  Santa  Isabel  has  been  ascended  a good  many  times — by 
Gustav  Mann,  Richard  Burton,  Don  Pellon  y Rodriguez,  Frank 
Newton,  and  Boyd  Alexander — to  mention  only  those  whose  researches 
have  definitely  added  to  our  knowledge.  Mann  made  seven  ascents  in 
1861-2  and  computed  the  altitude  from  an  average  of  his  barometer 
readings  as  9,3 16  feet  only.1  Rodriguez  and  Burton  brought  it  out  even 
lower — not  much  over  9,200  feet.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Rev.  John 
Clarke  in  1848  quotes  the  Admiralty  authorities  who  from  (?  sextant) 
observations  fixed  the  altitude  of  the  Pico  at  10,190  feet.  Captain 
Boyd  Alexander  goes  much  beyond  that,  and  makes  the  total  altitude 
of  the  cone  10,800  feet  {Ibis,  1903).  It  is  an  interesting  problem  for 
some  Alpinist  to  solve  : a difference  of  1,484  feet  between  the  estimates 
of  two  such  careful  observers  as  Mann  and  Alexander  is  not  easy  of 
explanation. 

In  the  southern  cordillera  of  Fernando  Po,  Oskar  Baumann  claims 
to  have  ascended  to  an  altitude  of  8,6oo  feet,  though  his  map  of  the 
southern  part  of  the  island,  showing  the  position  of  this  point2  on  the 
cordillera  and  of  the  wonderful  crater-lake  of  Riaba,  exhibits  many 
discrepancies  compared  with  the  more  correct  version  of  Fernando  Po 
geography  given  by  Capt.  Boyd  Alexander.3  The  rim  of  this  crater- 
lake  (called  Moka  from  the  great  Bube  king  or  chief  who  lives  in  the 
vicinity,  but  known  to  the  natives  as  Riaba)  is  5,904  feet  above  sea- 
level.  To  the  north  of  this  along  the  spine  of  the  island  are  other 
round,  unbroken  craters  filled  with  water.4 

The  mountain  sides  and  all  the  central  region  of  Fernando  Po  are 
densely  forested,  but  the  southern  part  of  the  island  has  many  de- 
forested valleys  covered  with  long  grass. 

The  vegetation  of  the  lofty  mountains  above  6,000  feet  is  rather 
poor  in  species  and  offers  most  affinities  with  the  similar  Alpine  flora 
of  the  Cameroons.  This  Alpine  flora  of  P'ernando  Po  and-Cameroons 
is  allied  to  that  of  Abyssinia  and  even  of  the  Mascarene  and  Madagas- 
car high  mountains.  A conifer  characteristic  of  the  Alpine  flora  of 
Sad  Thome  (an  island  some  190  miles  to  the  south-west)  is  absent 
from  the  mountain  flora  of  P'ernando  Po,  in  which  genera  characteristic 
of  the  Cape  flora  are  likewise  very  rare.  The  abundant  examples5  of 

1 Mann,  despite  the  care  with  which  he  observed,  must  have  had  some  persistent 
error  in  his  barometric  readings,  for  he  also  ascended  the  high  peak  of  the  Cameroons 
and  computed  that  at  only  12,271  feet  instead  of  over  13,300  feet,  as  it  really  is. 

2 This  is  evidently  the  Pico  del  Misterio  of  the  Spanish  Mission  map  of  1890, 
which  looks  down  on  a vast  crater. 

3 Ibis,  p.  330,  1903. 

4 These  are  superstitiously  reverenced  by  the  Bube,  who  style  each  of  them 
Riba  na  Lobe  = Lake  of  the  Sky. 

0 Sir  Joseph  Hooker,  reviewing  Mann’s  collections,  says,  “ Forty-three  genera  and 
twenty-seven  species.” 


948  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

North  European  plants  on  the  grass-lands  above  7,000  feet  are  sup- 
posed to  have  been  introduced  artificially  from  the  British  naval, 
missionary,  and  trading  stations  at  Clarence  and  the  vicinity;  birds 
having  transported  the  seeds  to  the  higher  regions  (a  rather  inadequate 
explanation). 

The  mammals  existing  in  Fernando  Po  in  the  middle  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  establish  its  “ continental  ” character. 

The  Rev.  John  Clarke,  writing  in  1848,  states  that  there  was  at  one 
time  a “mountain  bullock”  on  the  slopes  of  Clarence  Peak,  by  which 
he  may  mean  buffalo,  “ the  skin  of  which  is  used  by  the  natives  for 
their  shields.”  There  is,  or  was,  a red  Cephalophus  antelope  (C.  ogilbyi) 
in  the  mountain  forest,  called  by  the  Spaniards  venado  or  “deer,” 
but  the  skin  of  this  animal  is  much  too  delicate  to  resemble  ox-hide. 
The  red  buffalo  of  the  Cameroons  may  therefore  have  once  existed  on 
this  island,  and  have  been  exterminated  before  the  fauna  could  be 
examined  scientifically.  Specimens  of  the  mammals  indigenous  to 
Fernando  P6  were  collected  by  the  earlier  Baptist  missionaries,  as  well 
as  by  Louis  Fraser  of  the  Zoological  Society.  The  list  compiled  by 
Mr.  Oldfield  Thomas  in  1904,  based  on  the  researches  of  Mr.  E. 
Seimund  and  on  the  earlier  authorities,  Knapp,  Thomson,  Fraser,  Gray, 
Barbosa  de  Bocage,1  and  Frank  Newton,  is  as  follows  : — 

In  Fernando  Po  there  are  two  Colobus  monkeys,  Colobus pennantii 
and  C.  satanas 2 (C.  polycomus  is  of  doubtful  presence  in  the  island) ; 
five  Cercopithecine  monkeys : Cercopithecus  erythrotis ,3  of  the  blue- 
lipped cephus  group;  C.  preussi , of  the  white-throated  albogularis  group; 
C.  nictitans , a “nodding”  monkey  ; and  two  of  the  pretty  Mona  group 
— Cercopithecus  campbellii  and  C.  pogonias.  There  are  three  galagos  or 
African  lemurs  ( Galago  elegantulus,  G.  demidoffi  poensis , and  G.  alleni)  ; 
three  fruit-eating  bats  ( Hypsignathus  monstrosus,  Roussettus  stramineus ,4 
Scotonycteris  bedfordi  and  S.  poensis') ; five  insect-eating  bats  ( Hippo - 
siderus  fuliginosus , Rhinolophus  landeri , Nycteris  hispida , Mimetillus 
moloneyi,  and  Nyctinomus  brachypterus) ; and  two  shrews,  Crocidura 
poensis 5 and  Sylvisorex  johnstoni .6  An  otter,  of  the  “clawless”  type 
(. Lutra  capensis  poensis ),  a Linsang  genet  {Poiana  richardsoni),  a 
paradoxure  (Nandinia  binotata)  and  a true  genet  ( Genetta  pardina) 
appear  to  be  the  only  indigenous  carnivorous  mammals.7  Rodents 
are  well  represented  by  the  flying  anomalure  ( Anomalurus  fraseri), 
five  squirrels  ( Sciurus  stangeri , N.  poensis , S.  rufobrachiatus , N.  punc- 
tatus , and  Funisciurus  erythrogenys  and  F.  poensis ),  two  mice  (Mus 

1 Jornal  de  Sciencias  inathematicas , phy sicas  et  naturaes , Lisbon,  1903. 

2 Otherwise  known  as  Pennant’s  Bay  Colob  and  the  Black  Colob.  Lydekker 
also  states  that  the  Ursine  Colob  has  been  found  in  Fernando  Po,  but  this  has  not 
been  proved  by  a skin. 

3 This  species  has  a chestnut-orange  nose. 

4 The  author  prefers  the  correcter  spelling  Roussettus  to  Rousettus , so  often 

given.  The  generic  name  is  apparently  derived  from  the  French  name  Rousset. 

6 Two  other  forms  of  Crocidura  shrew  were  brought  home  by  Mr.  Frank 
Newton  in  1894  from  the  slopes  of  the  High  Peak  of  Fernando  Po,  which  have 
seemingly  not  been  described. 

3 Discovered  by  the  present  writer  on  the  opposite  coast  of  the  Cameroons. 

7 The  big  African  civet  ( Viverra  civetta ) is  said  by  Frank  Newton  to  be  found 
in  Fernando  Po,  as  it  is  in  the  island  of  Sad  Thome.  Possibly  in  both  cases  it  has 
been  introduced  by  Europeans. 


NOTES  ON  FERNANDO  PO 


949 


tullbergi  and  M.  alleni),  besides  the  imported  black  rat  and  house 
mouse  of  Europe,  and  a pouched  rat  ( Cricetomys  gambianus).  Bau- 
mann states  that  a porcupine  is  common,  and  that  the  natives,  use 
porcupine  quills  in  their  ornaments.  This  may  be  an  Atherura , 
but  there  is  no  specimen  recorded  for  identification.  There  is  at 
least  one  Hyrax  or  Dendrohyrax  (the  arboreal  form,  Procavia 
dorsalis ),  and  the  indigenous  bovines  are  two  duiker  antelopes  — 
Cephalophus  ogilbyi  and  C.  melanorheus.  But  these  last  are  also  found 
on  the  adjoining  coast  of  the  Cameroons  and  elsewhere  in  West  Africa. 
The  manati  ( Manatus  senegalensis ) may  occasionally  drift  over  from 
the  Cameroons  or  the  Old  Calabar  rivers,  but  does  not  seem  to  be  a 
true  native  of  the  Fernando  Po  coast.  One  species  of  pangolin  or 
scaly  ant-eater  ( Manis  tricuspis ) is  found  in  the  Fernando  Po  forests. 
With  the  exception  of  a fruit  bat  or  possibly  a squirrel,  the  mammals 
of  Fernando  Po  offer  no  species  that  is  peculiar  to  the  island  or  that  is 
indicative  of  its  long  isolation  from  the  mainland.  But  the  mammalian 
fauna  of  this  interesting  region  demands  a much  fuller  investigation, 
which  is  why  I have  dwelt  on  its  features  at  some  length.  Since  the 
Bube  natives  acquired  the  use  of  guns  in  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth 
century  they  have  done  much  to  exterminate  (for  food)  the  larger 
mammals;  but  even  if  perfect  remains  of  these  are  non-procurable, 
other  vestiges  — fragments  of  hide,  skulls,  teeth,  porcupine  quills, 
horns,  etc. — might  be  collected  which  would  furnish  the  requisite 
material  for  presumption  or  proof  of  certain  mammals  having  once 
formed  part  of  the  Fernandian  fauna.  The  Rev.  John  Clarke’s  remarks 
as  to  the  existence  of  a “ mountain  bullock  ” (possibly  buffalo)  should 
be  investigated.1 

It  may  also  turn  out  that  certain  mammals  attributed  by  Dr.  Gray 
or  Mr.  Waterhouse  to  Fernando  Po  really  came  from  the  Niger  delta 
or  the  Cameroons.  The  British  officials  of  the  Niger  expeditions  and 
the  Baptist  missionaries  often  shipped  their  specimens  from  the  depot 
at  Port  Clarence,  so  that  they  reached  England  as  from  “ Fernando 
Po.” 

As  regards  the  above-given  list  of  mammals,  their  Fernando  Po 
habitat  has  been  recently  (1894)  verified  by  the  Portuguese  collector, 
Frank  Newton,  with  the  exception  of  the  following  species  inserted  on 
other  authority : Cercopithecus  nictitans  (the  nodding  monkey),  Scoto- 
nycteris  poensis  (an  insect-eating  bat,  discovered  by  Captain  Boyd  Alex- 
ander), Poiana  poensis  (the  African  linsang),  Nandinia  binotata  (the 
two-spotted  paradoxure),  and  ? Atherura  africana  {fide  Baumann). 

The  bird  fauna  of  the  island,  fully  made  known  by  Captain  Boyd 
Alexander  and  his  collector  Jose  Lopes  (also  by  Fraser  and  Newton), 
offers  more  peculiarities  than  the  mammals.  Out  of  124  recorded 
species,  34  are  restricted  in  their  range  to  Fernando  Po,  2 are  only 
found  elsewhere  (as  yet)  in  East  Africa,  55  are  of  exclusively  West 
African  distribution  outside  Fernando  Po,  and  33  are  common  to  the 
whole  of  tropical  Africa.  Amongst  peculiar  or  interesting  birds  of  this 
island  may  be  mentioned  the  pretty  long-tailed  green-and-grey  tree 
warbler  {Urolais  marice ),  discovered  by  Captain  Boyd  Alexander,  the 

1 It  was  from  this  beast  that  the  leather  shields — Nkopo — were  made,  and  it 
was  called  Nkopo  or  Mboko. 


950  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

big  black  (tree)  hornbill  ( Ceratogyinna  atrata)}  two  turacos  ( Turacus 
vieriani  and  T.  buffoni ),  the  blue  plantain-eater  {Corythceold),  the  grey 
parrot,  common  love-bird  ( Agapornis ),  barn  owl  ( Strix  flammed),  eagle- 
owl  ( Bubo  poensis ),  and  the  Sudan  white-headed  vulture  ( Pseudogyps 
africanus).  This  last  bird,  which  is  not  commonly  met  with  in  the 
forest  regions  of  West  Africa,  is  nevertheless  found  along  the  coast-line 
of  Fernando  Po.  The  only  other  birds  of  prey  on  the  island  are  the 
fishing  vulture  ( Gypohierax  angolensis),  the  widespread  kite  (Milvus 
cegyptius ),  and  a small  sparrow-hawk  (Astur  lopesi).  It  is  curious  that 
the  widespread  crested  and  screaming  eagles  of  Africa  should  be 
absent. 

The  reptiles  of  Fernando  Po  are  almost  all  common  to  the  adjacent 
parts  of  Africa.  The  slender-muzzled  crocodile  ( Crocodilus  cataphractus) 
is  reported  to  exist  on  the  coast  in  the  estuaries  of  rivers,  but  the  report 
is  not  confirmed  by  recorded  specimens.  The  big  monitor  lizard 
( Varanus  niloticus)  is  a native.  There  are  at  least  two  chameleons  (C. 
oweni  and  C.  cristatus),  an  agama  lizard  ( A . planiceps ),  three  skinks  (one 
of  which,  Scelotes  poensis,  may  be  peculiar  to  the  island1 2),  and  twenty- 
two  snakes.  Of  these,  so  far  as  is  known,  only  three  kinds  are  poison- 
ous— the  rhinoceros  puff-adder  {Bids  nasicornis),  the  Causus  rhombeatus, 
and  the  tree  cobra  {Dendraspis  neglectus  or  jamesonii).  The  big  python 
P.  sebce  is  fairly  common.  There  is  a burrowing,  worm-like  snake 
{Typhlops punctatus)  and  the  boine  serpent  Calabaria  reinhardtii . 

The  common  green  turtle  frequents  the  coasts  in  large  numbers. 
So  far,  no  land  tortoise  ( Cinyxis ),  side-necked  water  tortoise  ( Sterno - 
thcerus ),  or  soft-shelled  river  turtle  ( Trionyx ) has  been  found  there. 
Yet  one  would  think  some  of  these  should  be  present.  Of  the  not 
much  studied  amphibians  one  species  of  Ccecilia  [worm-like,  limbless] 
has  been  recorded,  Urceotyphlus  squalostoma.  There  are  nine  known 
species  of  frogs  and  toads,  including  two  which  are  probably  restricted 
to  Fernando  Po  in  their  range — Rana  newtoni  and  Tympanoceros  new- 
toni.  The  last  named  is  a tree-  or  bush-haunting  frog  which  utters  loud 
and  piercing  cries. 

Of  the  fresh-water  fish  of  Fernando  Po,  the  following  species  are 
known  : P eriophthalmus  koelreuteri,  the  amphibious  mud-hopper  of 
estuaries ; Sicydium  plumieri,  Eleotris  gyrinus,  E.  dormitatrix,  and 
Poecilia  spilargyreia.  It  is  a remarkable  fact  in  fish  distribution  that 
the  Sicydium  and  both  the  species  of  Eleotris  are  elsewhere  found  in 
the  (fresh-water)  rivers  of  tropical  America.  On  the  island  of  Sao 
Thome,  190  miles  south-west  of  Fernando  Po,  the  Sicydium  plumieri 
(a  species  of  goby)  ascends  the  mountain  streams  to  an  altitude  of 
1,800  feet. 

An  American  species  of  land-crab — Coenobita  rugosus — is  found  in 
Fernando  Po,  and  travels  up  the  slopes  of  the  Great  Peak  to  an  altitude 
of  over  two  thousand  feet.  The  numerous  shore-crabs  are  those  of  the 
West  African  coast  generally. 

There  are  a few  peculiar  species  of  butterflies,  but  the  insects  of 
Fernando  Po  (very  little  studied)  offer  no  remarkable  features  so  far. 

1 Illustrated  in  the  present  writer’s  Liberia. 

2 This  legless  lizard  (mistaken,  no  doubt,  locally  for  a snake)  is  of  South  African 
affinities,  and  was  a rather  remarkable  discovery  by  Mr.  Frank  Newton. 


491-  BUBE  PEOPLE  OF  FERNANDO  PO,  NORTH  END  OF  THE  ISLAND 


NOTES  ON  FERNANDO  PO 


953 


The  indigenous  human  inhabitants  of  Fernando  Po  are  in  some 
respects  the  most  interesting  feature  of  the  fauna.  The  Bube  (as  the 
native  Fernandians  are  now  usually  called)  belong  mainly  to  the 
“Forest  negro”  type,  though  not  necessarily  to  a low  form  of  it,  in 
physical  appearance.  The  face  is  flat,  the  cheek-bones  tend  to  be 
broad  and  prominent ; but  prognathism  is  not  unduly  marked.  There 
is  an  abundant  development  of  head-hair,  and  the  men  are  able  to 
grow  full  but  rather  knotted  beards.  As  usual,  the  growth  of  head- 
hair  is  checked  in  the  women  (who,  except  where  some  degree  of 
Caucasian  blood  or  influence  is  present,  are  rarely  encouraged  to  grow 
long  hair),  but  on  the  men  becomes  quite  a Papuan  mop.1  Hair 
growth  on  the  body  is  normal,  not  excessive.  The  legs  (a  characteristic 
feature  in  the  Forest  negro)  are  short  and  stout,  with  well-furnished 
calves.  Boyd  Alexander  describes  them  as  “ spindle-shanked,”  a term 
which  can  only  apply  fairly  to  the  degenerate  Bube  near  Porto  Santa 
Isabel  or  the  north  of  the  island.  Baumann  states  that  the  legs  of  old 
persons  are  ringed  with  many  wrinkles  of  loose  skin,  but  in  reference 
to  Bube  men  in  the  prime  of  life  he  describes  them  as  “ pictures  of 
strength,  suppleness,  and  health.”  Alexander,  writing  of  the  northern 
Bube,  calls  them  “a  feeble  people  ...  of  short  stature,  abdominous 
. . . with  broad,  furtive  faces.”  The  truth  is  the  Bube  of  the  northern 
part  of  the  island  have  been  debased  by  European  alcohol  and  vices, 
and  perhaps  represent  a lower  stratum  of  the  original  immigrants  than 
the  taller,  handsomer  people  of  the  south  and  east. 

The  skin  colour  of  the  Bube  is  markedly  lighter  than  that  of  the 
Guinea  Coast  negroes,  from  Old  Calabar  to  the  Senegal.  It  is  naturally 
a clear  pale  brown,  but  regarded  superficially  the  Bube  appear  a 
red-skinned  people,  from  their  custom  of  smearing  the  skin  constantly 
with  a clay  (or  clay  and  palm-oil)  which  has  been  dyed  a deep  red 
colour  by  the  intermixture  of  a powdered  leaf.2  This  is  the  leaf  ( teste 
Baumann)  of  a “ Sopkorea-Wke  shrub,”3  which  is  dried  and  ground  up 
with  salt  on  a stone  platter  into  a red  paste. 

According  to  Alexander,  the  Bube  are  an  exceptionally  dirty 

1 “ The  hair  of  the  head  is  very  bushy,  and  is  sometimes  grown  by  the  men  in  a 
great  mop,  giving  them  quite  a Papuan  aspect.”  (Extract  from  present  writer’s  notes 
on  Fernando  Po,  compiled  in  1887.) 

2 Extract  from  Mr.  Thos.  T.  Hutchinson’s  “Tropical  Leaves:  Facts  Past  and 
Present  about  Fernando  Po.”  Sent  to  the  Liverpool  Philosophical  Society,  1856  (not 
printed). 

“ The  Boobees  do  not  seem  to  have  an  affinity  with  any  of  the  races  of  the 
Continent. 

“The  bodies  of  the  Boobees  in  a natural  condition  are  as  black  as  those  of  other 
negroes,  the  only  external  difference  observed  in  their  physique  is  that  in  many  the 
hair  falls  down  to  the  neck  in  spiral  curls.  These  are  generally  smeared  over  with  a 
pomatum  made  of  a red  dyeing  herb,  which  they  call  Tola,  and  which  is  mixed  with 
palm-oil  and  ashes  in  its  fabrication.  The  greater  number  of  them,  the  females 
especially,  have  transverse  cicatrices  on  their  faces  from  incisions  made  when  they 
are  very  young,  and  this  gives  them  a very  disgusting  appearance.  Their  hair  is 
dressed  with  the  pomatum  mixed  with  red  clay,  which  gives  the  curls  the  appearance 
of  having  lumps  of  red  lead  attached  to  the  locks.  Some  of  the  higher  class  paint 
their  faces  with  red,  yellow,  white,  and  brown  dyes  alternately  in  patches  under  the 
eyes  and  on  the  cheeks.  Many  of  the  men  have  long  beards,  pendent  from  their 
chins,  others  have  mustachios,  but  whiskers  are  seen  on  very  few.” 

3 It  is  very  likely  the  red  bracts  of  a Musscenda.  (H.  H.  J.) 


954  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

people,  who  seldom  wash,  merely  scraping  their  bodies  with  small 
knives  and  constantly  renewing  the  plaster  of  red  clay.  This  last  is 
frequently  applied  to  the  hair  of  the  head  as  well  as  all  over  the  face 
and  body.  [It  is  no  doubt  intended  partly  as  a protection  to  the  skin 
against  sandflies  and  mosquitoes.]  Baumann  states  that  the  more 
elegant  vary  the  monotony  of  red  pigment  by  dabbing  their  bodies 
with  spots  of  yellow  clay  [on  face  and  breast,  principally]. 

They  do  not  tatu  their  skins  with  blue  colour  (as  in  the  Cameroons), 
but  in  many  parts  of  the  island  they  practise  cicatrization,  that  is  to 
say,  they  mark  their  faces  with  lines  of  small  weals  that  radiate  from 
the  root  of  the  nose  over  the  cheeks  and  round  the  eyes  to  the 
forehead. 

As  regards  diseases,  the  Bube  are  a good  deal  subject  to  malarial 
fever  on  the  lowlands.  On  the  other  hand,  their  inherent  dislike  and 
suspicion  of  strangers,  black  or  white,  has  kept  them  free  from 
syphilis. 

After  a death  the  members  of  the  deceased’s  family  emigrate  to 
another  settlement  or  village,  after  burying  the  body  in  an  upright 
position,  the  upper  half  of  the  trunk  being  left  to  rot  above  the 
ground.  The  graves  are  dug  by  women,  who  use  wooden  stakes 
sharpened  by  fire.  They  are  described  as  remarkably  moral,  though 
polygamists  (marriage  is  a mere  matter  of  purchase  and  there  are 
scarcely  any  ceremonies  connected  with  it).  They  are  very  fond  of 
their  children.  Though  charged  with  dirtiness  as  regards  their  skins, 
they  are  cleanly  in  habits,  and  invariably  construct  and  use  latrines  in 
their  villages  or  in  even  temporary  encampments. 

The  Bube  apparently  ignore  the  practice  of  circumcision,  except 
possibly  in  coast  districts  where  foreign  negroes  have  settled  and  have 
introduced  this  custom.  They  have  medicine-men  or  witch-doctors, 
who  usually  perform  the  cicatrization  on  children’s  faces,  but  they 
seem  to  be  without  the  initiation  ceremonies  associated  with  puberty. 
Boys,  however,  drop  the  name  given  to  them  at  birth  and  adopt  a new 
name  at  about  fourteen  or  fifteen  years  of  age  when  becoming  adult. 
They  believe  in  witchcraft,  and  attribute  death  very  often  to  sorcery. 
There  is  no  record,  however,  of  poison  ordeals,  and  their  religion  is  very 
slight,  limited  to  a conception  of  a far-off  sky-god  and  of  many 
ancestral  ghosts  and  earth  spirits. 

It  is  difficult  to  ascertain  if  the  indigenes  of  Fernando  Po  have 
any  generic  name  for  themselves  as  a race.  The  only  word  which 
seems  to  apply  to  the  natives  of  the  island  (and  not  one  or  other 
tribe)  is  Bawo.  “ Bube  ” (or  in  some  versions,  Bo-obe)  appears  to  mean 
“ man  ” in  the  sense  of  “ male  ” [to  be  a contraction  or  corruption  of  the 
Bantu  word  Mu-lume ],1  and  is  their  word  of  appeal  or  greeting  one  to 
the  other,  just  as  a Spaniard  says  “ Hombre  ! ” The  name  Ediya  given 
to  this  people  by  the  Rev.  John  Clarke  and  various  British  writers  con- 
nected with  the  Niger  Expedition  of  1841  remains  unexplained  and  is 
seemingly  ignored  by  the  Bube  themselves.2  These  indigenous  [inhabi- 

1 In  the  northern  dialects  especially  of  Fernando  Po  m is  almost  always 
changed  to  b. 

2 If  it  is  a genuine  native  term,  it  bears  a curious  resemblance  to  Edea,  the  name 
of  a river  and  district  in  the  Cameroons  first  explored  by  Grenfell  in  1876. 


955 


NOTES  ON  FERNANDO  PO 

tants  of  Fernando  Po  call  the  island  itself  “ Itula;’  or  “ Ichula,”  and 
regard  it  as  a little  universe.  As  to  their  origin,  they  have  no  legends 
other  than  those  that  point  to  their  having  originated  from  the  craters 
of  the  interior. 

Before  the  eighteenth  century  the  Bube  lived  mainly  along  the 
coast-lands  of  the  island,  but  the  attacks  of  Portuguese  and  Spanish 
slavers  drove  them  inland  to  the  wooded  mountains.  Even  now  there 
are  considerable  tracts  of  forest  and  mountain,  especially  in  the  south- 
west, seemingly  never  as  yet  visited  or  inhabited  by  the  Bube. 

The  extreme  south  of  Fernando  Po  received  during  the  eighteenth 
century  runaway  slaves  from  the  island  of  Principe — natives  of  Angola 
probably.  These  refugees  are  still  known  by  the  Bube  as  “ Potogi  ” 
(Portuguese),  and  their  blood  and  language  may  have  slightly  influenced 
the  southern  Bube.  Also  there  is  reason  to  suppose  that  occasional 
canoe-loads  of  Basa,  Isubu,  or  Bakwiri  people  reached  the  east  coast  of 
Fernando  Po  at  different  times,  and  that  the  few  resemblances  in 
vocabulary  between  the  indigenous  Fernandian  speech  and  the  Isubu, 
Duala,  and  Basa  may  be  partly  due  to  the  occasional  arrival  of  colonists 
from  the  opposite  coast. 

The  linguistic  affinities  of  the  Fernandian  language  have  been 
already  discussed  or  indicated  in  chapter  XXXI.  it  is  therein  shown 
that  the  speech  of  the  Bube  is  a Bantu  language  of  the  “ First  In- 
vasion ” type,  the  result  probably  of  one  of  the  earliest  rushes  across 
Western  Equatorial  Africa  of  the  Bantu  influence.  The  nearest  affinities 
of  the  Fernandian  language  at  the  present  day  are  with  the  Bantu  dialects 
of  north -east  Congoland  and  with  some  of  the  semi-Bantu  languages 
of  the  Northern  Cameroons.  The  path  followed  by  the  Fernandian 
ancestors  in  their  westward  march  must  have  had  a northern  trend, 
and  the  island  may  have  been  reached  by  rafts  from  the  direction  of  the 
Rio  del  Rey. 

The  Bube  remained  in  the  age  of  stone  and  wood  down  to  the  estab- 
lishment of  the  English  officials,  traders,  and  missionaries  at  Clarence 
in  the  early  nineteenth  century.  Even  now  they  are  absolutely  ignorant 
of  smelting,  forging,  or  working  iron.  Their  weapons  and  implements 
are  still  mainly  of  wood 1 (flat-bladed  spears,  barbed  lances,  clubs, 
batons,  sticks);  and  stone  axes  and  knives  were  used  down  to  1858.2 
The  bow  seems  to  have  been  in  existence  as  a weapon,  since  there 
is  an  indigenous  word  for  arrow , and  a modification  of  the  bow  is 
used  as  a musical  instrument.  They  apparently  understood  how  to 
poison  the  tips  of  their  weapons,  and  the  use  of  pitfalls  (dug  with  fire- 
hardened  sticks)  for  catching  game. 

A remarkable  feature  in  their  former  wars  were  the  large  ox-hide 
shields  with  which  they  met  the  thrusts  of  the  [wooden]  barbed  lances. 
These  shields  are  said  by  the  Rev.  John  Clarke  to  have  been  made  from 

1 Of  course  the  Bube  now  goes  on  the  chase  armed  with  a long  Dane  gun,  flint, 
and  powder,  and  knives  and  cutlasses  of  European  manufacture. 

2 “Their  arms  of  warfare  are  only  a wooden  spear,  and  a lance  with  many 
indentations  in  it,  that  would  give  a very  disagreeable  wound.  Its  blade  is  from  six  to 
eight  inches  long,  generally  quadrilateral,  and  the  handle  is  from  six  to  eight  feet. 
But  their  intestine  wars,  the  only  broils  they  can  indulge  in,  are  very  rare,  and  when 
they  do  occur  neither  age  nor  sex  is  spared.  They  have  large  cow-hide  shields.” 
(Hutchinson,  1858.) 


956  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


the  hide  of  the  “ mountain  bullock,”  by  which  he  may  have  meant  a 
forest  buffalo.  Dr.  Oskar  Baumann1  refers  to  these  shields  and  to  the 
old”  ox-hides  found  in  Bube  villages.  No  domestic  oxen  have  ever 
been  observed — at  any  rate  since  1840 — amongst  the  natives  of  Fer- 
nando Po  [who  possessed  goats  and  sheep, 
dogs,  and  fowls  of  West  African  types  before 
the  settlement  of  Europeans  on  the  island2 3]; 
and  though  the  Spaniards  in  1780  make  refer- 
ences to  cattle  or  wild  cattle,  their  remarks 
might  equally  apply  to  a buffalo.  It  is  re- 
markable, however,  that  the  Fernandian  lan- 
guage possesses  several  words  for  ox — nkopo , 
mboko  (?  buffalo),  hauko.  Nkopo  may  corre- 
spond to  the  archaic  Bantu  root  nombe , 
ngombe , nkomo  ; and  mboko  to  mbogo  (buffalo). 
A West  African  buffalo  may  have  remained 
on  the  island  after  its  connection  with  the 
mainland  was  severed,  and  have  only  recently 
been  exterminated  by  the  natives.  Or  the 
early  Spanish  and  Portuguese  buccaneers  may 
have  landed  cattle,  which  took  to  the  bush. 
In  that  case  [i.e.  of  cattle  being  only  known 
through  European  introduction]  it  is  difficult 
to  explain  the  persistence  in  the  island  of 
archaic  Bantu  root-words  for  ox  or  buffalo. 

The  Bube  still  go  nearly  naked.  Whether 
before  they  came  under  any  European  influ- 
ence the  adult  males  wore  any  covering  over 
the  pudenda  is  uncertain  : probably  they  did 
— a half-gourd  (as  often  now  used),  a frag- 
ment of  monkey  skin,  a leaf,  or  a piece  of 
bast  inserted  into  or  suspended  from  the  string 
girdle  round  the  waist.  Outside  the  Spanish 
settlements  they  wear  little  more  now.  Part 
of  their  dress  is  a “ tail  ” of  twisted  cloth  or 
bast,  or  an  actual  monkey’s  tail  attached 
behind  to  the  string  girdle  and  allowed  to  fall 
between  the  nates?  All  the  men  wear  hats, 
large  or  small,  of  plaited  fibre  (or  caps  of 
hairy  monkey  skin).  These  straw  hats,  shaped 
like  a shallow  dish  with  a small  crown,  are 
a very  prominent  feature  in  the  appearance  of 
the  male  Bubes.  [The  average  shape  of  them 
is  indicated  in  the  illustration  on  p.  951.] 
They  are  fixed  to  the  mop  of  fuzzy  hair  by  wooden  skewers,  and 
seldom  removed,  day  or  night.  Male  Bube  wear  earrings,  either 


492.  FLAT-BLADED  SPEAR 
AND  BARBED  LANCE  OF 
THE  BUBE 

These  weapons  are  made  of  wood. 
Round  the  spear,  which  is  used 
for  fetish  purposes,  monkeys’ 
skulls  are  hung.  (These  speci- 
mens, collected  by  Baptist  Mis- 
sionaries, are  now  in  the  British 
Museum). 


1 Eine  Afrikanische  Tropen-Insel.  Fernando  Poo  und  die  Bube.  Vienna,  1888. 

2 To  these  domestic  animals  the  Bube  have  added  cats,  introduced  by  the  British. 
British  and  Spaniards  also  introduced  pigs. 

3 “ Their  dress,  of  those  who  do  dress,  consists  of  a hat,  often  only  a mere  pleat, 
but  sometimes  approaching  the  conical,  which  is  fastened  to  the  head  by  a skewer 


957 


NOTES  ON  FERNANDO  PO 

as  indicated  in  illustration,  page  25,  or  in  an  older  fashion  as  plugs  of 
wood  inserted  into  the  lobe  of  the  ear.  Men  and  women  alike  tie 
strings  of  plaited  fibre  tightly  round  the  lower  end  of  the  deltoid 
muscle  or  under  the  knee,  and  according  to  Boyd  Alexander  they 
“ produce  horrible  deformities  by  hempen  bands  about  six  inches  in 
width,  which  are  fixed  tightly  round  the  upper  arms  and  below  the 
knees.”  They  also  wear  necklaces,  bracelets,  and  anklets  of  beads  deftly 
woven  together  in  alternate  bands  of  colour — red,  yellow,  and  blue. 

Amongst  the  Bube  not  in  close  touch  with  Europeans,  and,  in  fact, 
in  the  days  before  European  beads  were  introduced,  these  necklaces  were 
invariably  made  of  small  pointed  land-shells,  possibly  a kind  of  Olivella. 
These  shell  necklaces  are  still  to  be  met  with  frequently,  and  before  the 
introduction  of  trade  goods  they  were  current  coin  in  the  island.  This 
is  remarkable  as  a coincidence,  because  much  the  same  shell  (the 
Olivella)  has  already  been  alluded  to  as  the  currency  in  Angola  and  the 
south-west  Congo.  But  necklaces  are  often  made  of  snakes’  vertebrae, 
feathers,  small  pieces  of  furred  skin,  the  teeth  of  various  mammals,  or 
the  horns  of  the  Cephalophus  antelopes  ; or  else  of  plaited  grass,  or  even 
ropes  of  the  beautiful  iridescent  Selaginella  (a  fern-like  Lycopodium)  or 
other  creeping  plants.1 

Their  houses  are  sometimes  placed  each  in  the  centre  of  a court 
that  is  enclosed  with  wooden  stakes.  The  house  itself  is  built  with 
a very  tall  and  steeply  sloping  roof,  the  eaves  coming  down  to  within 
about  three  feet  of  the  ground.  The  thatch  is  of  palm  fronds.  The 
actual  structure  of  the  houses  consists  of  slabs  or  segments  of  tree 
trunks  which  are  now  often  adzed,  but  before  the  introduction  of  Euro- 
pean tools  were  apparently  made  of  split  palm  trunks  or  other  trees  of 
no  great  girth  by  means  of  wedges  of  wood  or  stone,  or  by  simply 
using  segments  of  stems.  The  doorways  are  low,  and  are  closed  by 
slabs  of  wood.  The  houses  are  invariably  four-cornered  and  oblong, 
and  are  divided  usually  into  two  compartments,  one  for  sleeping  and  the 
other  for  cooking.  But  tiny  houses  are  made  alongside  the  big  ones  for 
children  to  sleep  in  who  are  old  enough  to  leave  their  parents.  Measures 
are  usually  taken  to  separate  rigidly  the  dormitories  of  girls  and  boys. 
As  already  mentioned,  the  sanitary  arrangements  are  superior  to  those 
of  many  negro  communities,  a special  latrine  being  invariably  provided 
for  each  household. 

Their  food  consists  of  the  flesh  of  such  wild  animals  as  they  can 
kill  (antelopes,  monkeys,  squirrels,  and  hyrax), 2 and  also  the  flesh  of 

passed  through  the  hair  from  one  side  to  the  other.  Often  a bunch  of  parrots’  feathers 
is  stuck  in  the  hat,  which  is  frequently  covered  by  a monkey’s  skin.  Tight  girdles,  of 
five  or  six  inches  in  width,  are  worn  on  their  legs  and  arms,  and  made  from  small 
pieces  of  the  whelk  shell  strung  together.  Circlets  of  this  whelk  shell  the  size  of 
half-a-crown  are  passed  over  the  forehead,  a monkey  skin  hanging  down  in  front  of 
the  body,  arid  that  is  all.  The  ladies  sometimes  have  an  enormous  weight  of  beads 
round  their  necks.”  (Hutchinson,  1858.) 

1 “ They  have  bladder  pouches  of  a crescentic  shape  suspended  from  their  necks 
and  filled  with  goat’s  lard  as  symbolical  of  the  richness  in  worldly  goods  of  the 
wearer.”  (Hutchinson,  1858.) 

2 Baumann  adds  porcupine.  This  authority,  who  travelled  all  round  the  island 
of  Fernando  Po,  insists  that  there  is  an  indigenous  porcupine.  It  is  curious  that  no 
trace  of  this  animal  has  been  obtained  by  the  many  assiduous  collectors  who  have 
visited  Fernando  Po. 


958  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

goats  and  fowls.  The  people  dwelling  on  the  east  coast  are  very  fond 
of  fish,  as  well  as  the  flesh  of  turtle,  which  are  often  stranded  on  the 
beach.  The  fishermen  travel  out  so  far  to  sea  in  their  canoes  laying 
their  nets,  that  one  wonders  they  have  remained  so  long  isolated,  and 
did  not  come  into  more  frequent  contact  with  the  Cameroons  people 
across  the  narrow  strait  of  thirty  miles.  Baumann  states,  however,  that 
very  few  of  the  Bubes  are  able  to  swim,  and  probably  for  fishing  pur- 
poses five  miles  is  the  extreme  that  their  canoes  may  require  to  go  out 
to  sea. 

The  canoes  in  question  resemble  very  much  certain  types  of  the 
Lomami  and  Upper  Congo  described  by  Grenfell  (who  also  noted  the 

resemblance  with 
those  of  Fernando 
Po),  in  having  a 
square,  rectangular 
stern.  The  prow  is 
attenuated,  but  is 
solid,  not  scooped 
out.  On  the  extremity 
of  the  prow  is  fastened 
a kind  of  flagstaff,  the 
top  of  which  is  deco- 
rated with  bunches  of 
feathers.  Baumann 
states  that  this  can 
become  the  mast  of 
a primitive  sail.  It 
may  resemble  what 
the  present  writer  has 
seen  in  the  estuary  of 
the  Cameroons  River, 
where  the  canoes  are 
more  or  less  propelled 
by  a huge  Raphia 
frond  being  fastened 
like  mast  and  sail  in 
one,  and  serving  the 
purposes  of  a saiL 
The  Bube  eat  readily  the  crabs,  shellfish,  crayfish,  and  small  fresh- 
water fish  which  they  find  on  the  sea-coast  or  in  the  streams  of  their 
island.  They  also  eat  the  honey  of  the  wild  bees.  As  regards  culti- 
vated plants,  though  they  have  the  banana  (which  bears  an  almost 
identical  name  with  that  given  to  it  in  the  Cameroons),  the  yam 
(. Dioscorea ),  and  the  taro  or  koko-yam  (really  an  arum,  Colocasia ),  they 
are  entirely  without  maize,  sugar-cane,  manioc,  sweet-potatoes,  and 
ground-nuts,  all  but  the  last  being  American  introductions,  however 
much  they  may  have  spread  over  continental  Africa.  Of  course  they 
have  the  oil  palm,  and  of  this  they  make  great  use,  not  only  for  the  oil 
from  the  nuts,  but  also  the  sap,  which  provides  them  with  palm  wine,  a 
drink  to  which  they  are  devoted.  In  fact,  as  Baumann  remarks,  the 
Bube  represents  in  agriculture  the  state  of  the  African  before  the  dis- 


493.  A PRIMITIVE  SAIL  : RAPHIA  FROND  STUCK 
IN  CANOE 


NOTES  ON  FERNANDO  PO 


959 


covery  of  America.  Since  acquaintance  with  Europeans  the  Bube  has 
taken  kindly  to  tobacco,  and  unhappily  also  to  rum  and  gin.  They  do 
not  seem  to  have  known  salt  before  it  was  introduced  to  them  by 
Europeans.  Possibly  their  former  life  on  the  sea,  and  their  diet  of 
shellfish,  etc.,  gave  them  all  the  salt  they  required.  They  make  dishes 
and  vessels  of  clay,  which  are  dried  in  the  sun , but  do  not  seem  to  know 
how  to  bake  clay  with  fire,  nor  are  they  keen  to  experiment  in  this 
direction,  since  they  now  by  means  of  commerce  obtain  iron  pots  from 
Europeans.  But  they 
weave  excellent  bas- 
kets. On  the  other 
hand,  they  seem  to 
ignore  the  art  of  mat- 
making. 

They  have  a great 
love  of  music,  but  use 
neither  the  drum  nor 
the  friction-drum,  both 
of  which  are  almost 
universal  in  the  Congo 
and  Cameroons  re- 
gions. They  make 
large  and  small 
“ gongs  ” or  bells  of 
hard,  resonant  wood 
which  they  call  <elibo. 

They  use  a kind  of 
flute  with  six  or  more 
holes  which  is  played 
with  the  lips,  and  they 
also  have  a peculiar 
flute-like  whistle  used 
for  signalling.  This  is 
described  by  Boyd 
Alexander  as  a small, 
hollow  - necked  gourd 
with  a hole  at  the 
rounded  end.  It  can 
be  heard  at  great  dis- 
tances, and  the  natives  seem  to  have  developed  a system  of  code 
signals  by  musical  tones  which  conveys  as  much  information  as  the 
drum  signals  of  the  Cameroons.  They  also  possess  a development  of 
the  musical  bow.  The  man  who  plays  this  rests  the  bow  between  his 
knees  and  holds  one  end  of  the  bow-string  (where  it  is  attached  to 
the  bow)  between  his  lips.  The  string  is  held  tautly  against  a notch  in 
a wooden  arrow,  while  with  one  hand  a piece  of  metal  (probably 
earlier  still  a splinter  of  wood)  is  rubbed  up  and  down  against  the 
taut  string. 

The  Bubes  are  very  fond  of  dancing,  especially  at  times  of  full 
moon.  There  is  a dancing  lawn  or  flat,  smooth  place  provided  for 
almost  every  village.  They  usually  dance  to  the  accompaniment  of 


494.  SHELL  ORNAMENTS  OF  THE  BUBE 


960  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

the  great  wooden  bells  ( elibo ),  decked  out  with  their  favourite  shell 
ornaments.  Dancing  and  singing  go  together,  the  singing  being  usually 
the  constant  repetition  of  a single  line,  though  there  is  something  re- 
sembling part-songs  sung  by  men  and  women. 

There  is  no  slavery  amongst  the  Bubes  themselves,  and  any  attempt 
to  introduce  the  slave  trade  amongst  them  was  fiercely  resisted  by  these 
proud  people,  who  apparently  had  not  practised  slavery  amongst  them- 
selves, and  with  whom  the  term  sibala  or  slave  (writes  the  Rev.  John 
Clarke)  was  one  of  bitter  reproach.  Any  of  the  Fernandians  who  were 
captured  by  marauding  parties  of  Europeans  either  died  of  heart-break 
or  committed  suicide  if  they  did  not  succeed  in  escaping. 

So  suspicious  were  they  of  being  enslaved,  that  it  has  been  a 
matter  of  the  greatest  difficulty  to  induce  them  to  enter  European 
employment  or  to  become  the  adherents  of  a mission  station,  even  when 
they  were  well  paid  and  well  treated.  Baumann  states  that  the  only 
European  who  ever  really  gained  their  confidence  was  George  Grenfell, 
who,  remarkable  to  relate,  actually  engaged  a Bube  at  Fernando  Po  in 
1880  and  induced  this  man  to  follow  him  to  the  Congo,  where  he  be- 
came (and  remained  for  years)  an  industrious,  well-conducted  boatman 
on  the  s.s.  Peace. 

Each  Bube  village  is  under  the  rule  of  a head-man  or  chief,  the 
succession  being  usually  from  uncle  to  nephew.  There  are  sometimes, 
however,  women  chiefs.  Down  to  the  time  at  which  Clarke  wrote  (the 
’forties  of  the  last  century)  the  Bubes  were  divided  into  a large  number 
of  mutually  hostile  communities  and  even  tribes.1  Noteworthy  amongst 
these  divisions  were  the  Bateti,  Bani,  Bakaki,  Balilipa,  and  Boloko.  The 
Bakaki  even  at  the  present  day  are  mentioned  by  Boyd  Alexander  as 
being  somewhat  different  in  appearance  and  manners  to  the  other 
Bubes.  They  dwell  on  the  east  coast.  The  Boloko  seem  at  the  present 
time  to  be  the  most  numerous  of  the  tribes,  and  are  found  in  the 
southern  and  south-eastern  part  of  the  island.  (On  the  whole,  the 
western  coast  of  Fernando  Po,  except  about  the  shores  of  San  Carlos 
Bay,  seems  to  have  been  the  least-inhabited  part  of  the  island.) 

Some  time  in  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century — when  is  not 
exactly  known — a remarkable  movement  grew  up  amongst  the  Bube 
people,  who  had  hitherto  dwelt — according  to  Clarke  and  other  writers 
— in  mutually  hostile  independent  tribes  and  communities.  A powerful 
chieftainship  of  a “Sovereign  Pontiff”  kind  grew  up  in  a large  Bube 
settlement  by  the  crater-lake  (within  the  crater  walls)  of  Riaba,  in  the 
southern  half  of  the  island.  Gradually  it  became  known  to  the  Euro- 
peans in  the  early  ’seventies  of  the  last  century  that  there  was  a great 

1 In  Clarke’s  day  the  natives  were  governed  by  a strong  aristocracy.  Each  town 
had  its  head-man.  These  chiefs  were  assisted  by  counsellors  known  as  Botuku  or 
gentlemen.  There  was  also  a chief  warrior  in  each  section — a “ war  man,”  just  as 
there  is  amongst  the  Kru  tribes  on  the  coast  of  Liberia,  who  conducted  warfare, 
leaving  to  the  chief  the  direction  of  civil  business  and  priestcraft.  In  each  town  there 
were  two  “ Buala”  or  bands  of  militia,  one  of  old  men  and  the  other  of  young.  Very 
often  these  militia  were  turned  out  to  hunt  in  times  of  peace.  Every  now  and  then  they 
would  meet  for  a sort  of  parade  called  “diosa,”  when  they  went  through  martial 
games — throwing  barbed  wooden  lances,  or  attacking  in  sham  battles  a wall  of 
leather  shields.  A good  deal  of  intertribal  fighting  occurred,  together  with  ve?idette 
handed  down  from  father  to  son,  so  that  the  condition  of  the  island  was  not  altogether 
ideal  before  the  Spaniards  and  English  interfered  in  its  affairs. 


NOTES  ON  FERNANDO  PO 


961 

Bube  chief  known  as  Moka  who  lived  at  Riaba,  who  had,  in  a manner 
as  unexplained  as  it  seems  extraordinary,1  extended  his  sovereign  influ- 
ence over  all  the  Bube  people  of  Fernando  Po.  In  1875  the  Revs. 
Hugh  Broun  and  Clowes,  accompanied  by  a foreign  negro,  a native  of 
Santa  Isabel,  managed  to  reach  Moka’s  town  of  Riaba,  but  did  not 
succeed  in  seeing  this  potentate. 

Moka  is  described  in  1886  by  Oskar  Baumann  as  a naked  savage, 
the  husband  of  forty  wives,  who  wore  necklaces  of  old  silver  coins,  but 
who  was  a personage  wielding  far  more  influence  over  Fernando  Po 
than  the  Spanish  Governor  at  Santa  Isabel.  Superstition  forbade  this 
Bube  monarch  ever  to  see  the  sea.  He  carefully  eschewed  the  use  of 
European  clothes,  weapons,  implements,  or  articles  of  food.  He  was  in 
Grand-Lama-like  seclusion,  seen  by  very  few  Bubes  except  his  elderly 
counsellors,  his  forty  wives,  and  his  children.  From  his  village  in  the 
crater  of  Riaba  well-kept  paths  radiated  to  the  east  and  west  coasts. 

In  spite  of  stories  to  the  contrary,  the  Bubes  do  not  seem  to  have 
diminished  in  numbers  markedly  since  they  came  into  closer  contact 
with  European  influence — in  other  words,  since  the  British  occupied  the 
northern  part  of  the  island  in  1827  and  the  Spanish  succeeded  them  in 
1846.  In  this  last  year  the  Rev.  John  Clarke  estimated  their  numbers 
at  a little  over  twenty  thousand.  Baumann,  writing  in  1877,  would 
seem  to  calculate  that  they  had  increased  then  to  between  twenty-five 
and  thirty  thousand.  The  Rev.  Theophilus  Parr  {vide  note  on  p.  882) 
thinks  they  may  now  exceed  thirty  thousand  in  number.  The  Spanish 
priests  of  the  Mission  dedicated  to  the  Immaculate  Heart  of  Mary  have 
exercised  a kindly  influence  over  the  fate  of  these  primitive  people,  and 
the  most  cordial  praise  must  be  bestowed  on  the  efforts  of  the  Rev. 
John  Barleycorn,  a West  Indian  Methodist  missionary  who  has  laboured 
hard  to  enable  the  Bube  to  acquire  some  practical  knowledge  of  agri- 
culture and  simple  industries.  Whether  the  Bubes  will  withstand  long 
the  modern  movement  for  the  settlement  and  cultivation  of  Fernando 
Po  by  European,  half-caste,  and  foreign  negro  planters  it  is  impossible 
to  say.  Perhaps  they  may  become  fused  in  the  negro  community  by 
joining  the  labour  force  which  the  successful  cultivation  of  cocoa  is 
attracting  to  this  island. 

Quite  distinct  from  the  Bube,  in  fact,  must  be  mentioned  the 
“Poto”  negroes  of  Santa  Isabel  and  some  of  the  cocoa  farms  and 
plantations  on  the  east  coast.  Poto  or  Ripoto  is  the  Bube  name  for  the 
town  of  Santa  Isabel,  formerly  christened  Clarence  by  the  British  occu- 
pants. Here  were  established  from  1827  onwards  many  of  the  slaves 
that  were  freed  by  the  British  cruisers,  or  negroes  who  were  dissatisfied 
with  Sierra  Leone  and  the  West  Indies,  and  emigrated  hither,  following 
the  Baptist  missionaries.  To  these  have  been  added  from  time  to  time 
natives  of  Liberia  and  the  Kru  coast  who  have  married  and  settled 
down  permanently  as  colonists.  All  these  people  speak  a corrupt 
Creole  English.  A fair  number  of  Cuban  half-castes  sent  hither  as 

1 Having  regard  to  the  descriptions  of  the  Bube  given  by  Clarke,  Burton,  and 
others  in  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century,  in  which  they  are  represented  as 
feckless  savages  of  the  Stone  Age,  living  from  hand  to  mouth,  with  no  other  com- 
munity of  interests  than  a general  dislike  to  the  foreign  negro  or  European. 

II. — 2 H 


962  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

political  prisoners  have  to  some  extent  fused  with  this  foreign  negro 
population  of  Fernando  Po. 

Down  to  about  1885  the  island  remained  in  a derelict  condition. 
The  Spanish  Government  then  sent  thither  a number  of  political 
prisoners  (Cuban  rebels).  Some  of  these  settled  down  as  planters. 
The  success  of  cocoa  planting  in  the  Portuguese  island  of  Sad  Thome 
induced  a few  Spanish  planters  to  take  up  this  cultivation  in  Fernando 
Po.  The  Liberian  Government  was  induced  to  allow  a number  of 
Kru  boys  to  be  recruited  for  Fernando  Po  plantations,  and  the  island  is 
now  attaining  a considerable  degree  of  prosperity. 

It  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  islands  in  the  whole  world,  yet 
although  it  has  no  great  tracts  of  marsh,  Fernando  Po  is  nevertheless 
very  unhealthy  for  Europeans  in  the  coast  districts.  Much  of  this  ill- 
health  no  doubt  can  be  avoided  now  by  the  realization  of  the  mosquito 
peril  (mosquitoes  swarm  in  the  coast  districts,  as  also  do  the  equally 
obnoxious  but  not  so  dangerous  midges  or  sand-flies).  Cool  nights  (a 
priceless  boon  in  these  latitudes)  can  be  obtained  in  the  mountainous 
interior.  The  island  coast  possesses  several  good  harbours.1  Seeing 
what  a successful,  healthy,  prosperous  European  colony  has  grown  up 
under  the  Portuguese  on  the  not  far  distant  island  of  Sad  Thome, 
there  is  no  reason  why,  under  an  energetic  Spanish  administration,  a 
similar  fate  should  not  be  in  store  for  Fernando  Po.  Quite  half  the 
island — and  the  healthiest  half — is  without  inhabitants.  On  the  hot 
coast  belt  there  is  a growing  colony  of  English-speaking  negroes, 
planted  there  originally  by  the  Baptist  Mission  and  the  British  cruisers. 
Freedom  of  religion  should  be  emphatically  proclaimed  and  enforced.2 
The  efforts  of  the  Catholic  and  Methodist  missionaries  to  win  over 
the  Bubes  to  a reasonable  type  of  civilization  ought  to  be  heartily 
seconded.  The  way  to  do  this  would  be  for  the  Spanish  Government 
to  uproot,  abolish,  penalize  the  infernal  drink  trade,  the  mental  and 
physical  poisoning  of  the  Bubes  by  vile  rum,  gin,  and  other  noxious 
products  of  British,  German,  and  Spanish  distilleries  which  is  being 
carried  on  by  white  and  coloured  traders  of  those  nationalities. 

An  equitable  settlement  of  the  land  question  should  be  taken  in 
hand,  and  when  the  present  and  future  of  the  Bubes  had  been  amply 
secured  by  the  establishment  of  native  reserves,  there  would  still  remain 
many  thousand  acres  of  magnificently  fertile  soil  for  development  by 
Spanish  colonists  or  by  educated  negroes  of  Spanish  nationality. 

1 Except  for  occasional  tornadoes,  the  sea  is  never  seriously  rough  in  this  part 
of  the  Gulf  of  Guinea. 

2 At  present  all  public  education  is  under  the  control  of  the  Prior  of  the  Mission 
of  the  Immaculate  Heart  of  Mary. 


ADDITIONAL  NOTE 


CONGO  PROBLEMS 


A BOOK  of  this  description  answers  (I  hope)  many  questions,  but  it 
also  provokes  others.  The  compiler  can  at  most  claim  that  the  informa- 
tion he  has  been  enabled  to  gather  together  and  present  to  the  reading 
public  may  be  a contribution  towards  the  solution  of  some  problems  in 
science  or  sociology  presented  by  this  vast  area  of  West  Central  Africa 
— of  the  most  archaic  Africa,  in  geology,  biology,  and  human  civiliza- 


495.  AN  AFFLUENT  OF  THE  WESTERN  CONGO  IN  THE  CATARACT  REGION 

tion.  It  has  been  his  hope  in  the  compilation  of  this  work  that  it  may 
not  only  interest  those  quite  unacquainted  with  Africa  or  with  the 
Congo  basin,  but  that  it  may  provoke  those  other  few  amongst  students 
in  or  of  Africa  to  pursue  the  lines  of  research  opened  up,  or  faintly 
indicated,  and  advance  along  these  broadening  avenues  of  exact  know- 
ledge till  they  emerge  into  the  central  goal  of  a full  comprehension  of 
Africa.  Not  only  will  this  knowledge  enable  us  to  make  fewer  mistakes 
in  future  as  temporary  guardians  of  the  Negro,  but  it  will  helpj*us  to 

963 


964  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

understand  better  our  own  prehistoric  past,  the  history  of  the  Earth  on 
which  we  dwell,  of  the  marvellous  evolution  of  mammalian  life  of  which 
Man  is  the  climax,  the  diseases  of  man  and  animals  which  Africa 
generates  or  recreates  (and  which  ultimately  react  on  the  world  at 
large),  and  the  opportunities  for  a profitable  reciprocal  commerce  which 
may  result  from  a studious  research  into  the  minerals  and  vegetables  of 
Congoland  and  the  Cameroons. 

In  this  region  of  Central  Africa  we  may  see  preserved  as  in  a 
wonderful  museum  the  aspect  of  Europe  in  flora  or  fauna  a million 
years  ago ; still  more  certainly  we  behold  the  life  of  British  man 
in  Palaeolithic  times  or  in  the  earliest  days  of  Neolithic  civilization. 
Here  still  linger  in  active  use  the  sword  and  dagger  of  the  bronze 
period  (in  shape  at  any  rate),  the  crossbow,  the  buff  jerkin ; here  are 
lake-  or  pile-dwellings  in  active  use ; here  are  the  therapeutics,  the 
beliefs,  the  burial  ceremonies,  the  simple  vices  and  virtues  of  our  own 
dark  ages. 

I will  therefore  venture  to  indicate  some  directions  that  might  be 
profitably  followed  by  individual  detailed  research,  in  the  hope  that 
these  remarks  may  serve  to  point  in  the  right  direction  energies,  at 
present  ineffective  through  want  of  an  object  or  through  lack  of  con- 
centration. 

In  GEOLOGY,  the  Cataract  region  of  the  Western  Congo , the  Water- 
parting  of  the  Mubangi-  Shari  systems , that  between  the  main  Congo- 
Lualaba  and  the  basins  of  Tanganyika , Mweru , or  the  Albertine  Rift 
Valley  are  the  most  interesting  parts,  because  in  their  formations  are 
locked  up  the  past  history  of  Africa  in  Secondary  and  Early  Tertiary 
times.  An  exact  knowledge  of  the  rocks,  the  dip  of  the  strata,  the 
rate  of  water-action  may  enable  us  to  decide  the  former  extent  of  the 
Congo  lake  or  lakes,  their  outlets,  and  their  effect  on  the  present  dis- 
tribution of  living  forms.  Researches  into  petrology  may  also  reveal 
fossil  forms  of  the  highest  interest  or  result  in  important  mineral  dis- 
coveries— salt,  limestone,  or  coal.  Another  direction  in  which  exact 
information  is  sorely  needed  is  the  observation  and  calculation  of 
Altitudes.  Various  references  in  this  book  show  the  extraordinary 
degree  to  which  Grenfell,  the  French,  and  the  Belgian  authorities  differ 
in  the  statement  of  the  altitude  above  sea-level  of  Stanley  Pool , the 
Grenfell  Falls  of  the  Mubangi , the  Stanley  Falls , the  Wissmann  Falls 
of  the  Kasai,  and  so  on.  The  greatest  depth  of  Lake  Leopold  LL  would 
be  another  interesting  fact  to  ascertain. 

In  the  FLORA  of  the  Congo  many  wonderful  discoveries  no  doubt 
will  yet  be  made.  Meantime  collectors  and  travellers  might  endeavour 
to  obtain  the  necessary  material  (flowers,  leaves,  seed,  and  photographs) 
for  the  identification  of  the  indigenous  species  of  Bamboo , and  the 
determination  of  the  range  of  each  species  ; the  same  material  for  the 
same  purposes  in  regard  to  the  Oil  Palm , the  Raphia , and  the  Calamus 
climbing  palms.  Details  as  to  the  range  of  the  Papyrus  rush  and  the 
various  kinds  of  Pandanus  would  also  be  of  interest.  The  Alpine  flora 
of  the  mountains  above  7,000  feet  round  the  north  end  of  Tanganyika 
and  thence  to  the  Semliki  valley  has  not  yet  been  properly  investi- 
gated, especially  in  regard  to  the  existence  of  conifers. 

As  regards  the  Fauna  of  the  Congo-Cameroons,  we  require  to 


CONGO  PROBLEMS  965 

know  (among  many  other  things)  the  species  or  sub-species  of  tsetse 
fly  in  each  district,  together  with  the  material  for  ascertaining  to  what 
extent  each  particular  tsetse  acts  as  the  transmitting  agency  for  sleeping 
sickness  and  other  diseases.  Did  we  know,  for  example,  the  exact  and 
full  range  of  Glossina  palpalis , we  could  determine  the  present  danger 
area  of  sleeping  sickness. 

For  the  same  purposes — knowledge  of  the  origin  of  African 
diseases — much  more  information  is  necessary  respecting  the  ticks 
and  mosquitoes  of  the  Congo,  their  classification  and  range.  Collections 
of  the  aquatic  fauna  of  the  lakes  and  rivers  would  materially  assist 
theorizing  as  to  the  past  relations  of  the  Congo  basin  with  other  areas 
of  land  and  water.  By  such  collections  of  polyzoa,  jellyfish,  crabs, 
prawns,  water-snails,  and  fish  the  peculiarities  of  Tanganyika  may  dis- 
appear or  may  be  intensified. 

Lake  Mweru  in  many  respects,  as  regards  the  fauna  of  the  lake 
itself  and  of  the  regions  surrounding  it,  is  a region  of  great  interest, 
constantly  furnishing  fresh  surprises,  especially  in  mammals. 

The  Birds  of  the  Congo  so  far  have  been  most  imperfectly  studied, 
with  a view  to  their  identification,  range,  and  life-habits.  One  point 
among  a thousand  others  deserves  investigation  : the  nesting  habits  of 
the  Great  Blue  Plantain-eater  ( Corythceola :).  We  know  little  or  nothing 
as  .yet  as  to  the  appearance  or  means  of  progression  of  the  nestling : as 
to  whether  it  is  naked  at  birth  or  covered  with  down,  what  is  the  colour 
of  the  down,  and  whether  the  young  bird  crawls  on  all  fours  on  leaving 
the  nest  like  a far-off  relation  in  South  America,  or  more  resembles  in 
behaviour  a young  cuckoo  or  parrot.  What  is  the  exact  range  of  the 
Okapi  and  the  Forest  Pig , and  what  are  their  degrees  of  specific  varia- 
tion in  each  district?  Do  the  Anthi'opoid  Apes  extend  in  range  to  the 
southern  side  of  the  main  Congo?  What  local  types  do  they  assume? 
What  are  their  life-habits  ? We  want  to  know  much  more  about  the 
shape  of  the  ear,  length  and  girth  of  the  tusks  in  the  different  races  of 
Congo  elephants,  their  relative  size,  and  the  colour  of  the  skin.  In 
most  cases  these  facts  are  best  ascertained  by  photography.  The 
geographical  range  and  local  varieties  of  species  of  the  giraffe,  of  all 
antelopes,  rodents,  hyraxes  ; of  the  rhinoceros,  zebra,  lion,  and  leopard  ; 
of  all  monkeys  and  baboons : are  all  subjects  as  to  which  we  are  most 
imperfectly  instructed  at  the  present  time. 

The  study  of  CONGO  ANTHROPOLOGY  is  only  in  its  infancy  as  yet. 
We  have  no  sufficient  material  in  photographs,  skulls,  skeletons,  local 
anatomical  dissections  wherewith  properly  to  classify  the  different  negro 
or  negroid  types  of  the  Congo  basin  and  to  determine  their  interrela- 
tions or  their  affinities  with  other  African  peoples. 

Nothing  of  course  should  be  done  to  offend  local  feeling  or  even 
superstition,  but  whenever  any  traveller,  physician,  or  surgeon  could  in 
hospital  work  or  in  the  exploration  of  deserted  burial-places  or  ancient 
battle-grounds  obtain  osteological  specimens  illustrative  of  the  indi- 
genous human  types  they  might  remember  that  the  scientific  institu- 
tions of  Europe  and  America  are  singularly  ill-provided  with  such 
material.  A less  gruesome  (but  less  valuable)  line  of  devotion  to 
anthropological  research  would  be  the  collection  of  hair  from  the  negro 
and  negroid  peoples  of  the  Congo,  and  the  sending  of  it  accompanied 


966  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 

with  photographs  of  the  owner  of  the  hair  to  any  authenticated  society 
dealing  with  African  Anthropology. 

We  want  a great  deal  more  accurate  information  about  Congo 
diseases,  morals , customs,  and,  above  all,  native  ideas  as  to  land  rights, 
taxation,  service  to  chiefs , and  so  on.  Much  of  the  land  and  taxation 
settlements  in  British  Central  Africa  and  Uganda,  Lagos,  Southern 
Nigeria,  and  Sierra  Leone  were  based  on  such  information,  collected  for 
the  most  part  by  missionaries.  The  negro  is  a great  conservative  and 
worships  precedent  as  much  as  does  the  House  of  Commons. 

With  regard  to  LANGUAGES,  the  most  interesting  field  of  research 
at  the  present  time  lies  undoubtedly  in  the  whole  basin  of  the  Wele- 
Mubangi,  from  the  frontiers  of  the  Egyptian  Sudan  to  those  of  the 
Shari  basin,  and  westward  to  the  Sanga  River.  We  know  nothing  of 
the  Banda  dialects  and  their  affinities,  of  the  Banza  or  the  Banziri 
languages,  or  NSAKARA,  Bubu,  or  MoNGWANDI.  We  know  very  little 
of  Mahbettu , Mundu,  Ndonga.  or  Bamanga.  The  question  as  to  whether 
there  is  or  was  an  original  Pygmy  speech  (as  there  is  an  original 
Bushman  language)  is  still  undetermined.  As  far  as  the  study  of  the 
Bantu  languages  is  concerned,  we  are  still  very  ignorant  as  to  the  Lunda 
vocabulary ; and  practically  know  nothing  of  the  Kioko  language  or 
the  dialects  spoken  all  along  the  Congo-Zambezi  frontier.  The 
BALOMOTWA  Cave-dwellers  of  eastern  Katanga  should  also  be  studied 
in  view  of  their  alleged  Bushman  affinities. 

H.  H.  JOHNSTON. 


496.  BAPTIST  MISSION  STEAMER  “ENDEAVOUR” 


INDEX 


Note  to  reader. — Many  tribal  names  and  references  to  languages  will  be  found  under  the 
syllables  A-,  Ba-,  Bo-,  Bu-,  Ki-,  and  Ma- 
The  pages  from  497  onwards  are  in  the  Second  Volume. 


Ababua  (Abobwa)  or  Babua  people  and 
languages  354,  356,  359,  393,  512,  528- 
9,  570  et  seq.,  587  et  seq.,  592,  650,  666, 
676,  686,  700,  756-7,  776  et  seq.,  801  ; 
language  829,  863,  866  et  seq. 
Abangobango  people  433-4,  554,  890 
Abanjia  (Nyamnyam)  365,  403,  435,  829 
Abarambo  (Nyamnyam)  365,  650,  675-6, 
829 

Abira  people  368 

A. B. I. R.  Company  459,  466,  468,  476,  478, 

485 

Abo  people,  language  (Cameroons)  5 1 
Abobwa  language  864 
Abodo  people  368,  832 
Aborigines  Protection  Society,  the  439 
Abortion,  procuring  671,  673-4 
Acacias  (thorn  trees)  1 5 1 , 640 
Achatina  935 

Acker,  van,  Dr.  Auguste  324,  492,  636, 

717,  887 

Adultery  674  et  seq.,  717 
Aduma  language  869,  889 
Africa  : domestic  animals,  food  plants 
of  78 

— the  drama  of  474-5 
African  Lakes  Company  438 
Agriculture,  native,  negro  206-7,  349. 
360,  369,  520,  616  et  seq.,  625,  675, 
958-9 

A.  I.  A.  (steamer)  102,  410 
Akka,  Akoa  pygmies  350,  503 
Akula  people,  359,  528 
Akwa,  “ King  ” (Cameroons)  30,  33,  59 
Alanbwa  (Langwasi)  370-1,  832 
Albert  Edward  Lake  164-5,  3J3 
Albert  Nyanza  Lake  893,  921,  945 
Albertine  Rift  Valley  893 
Alcohol,  in  Africa  609-10  ; poisoning  the 
natives  24  et  seq.,  376,  381,  610,  963  ; 
dangerous  for  Europeans,  227  ; manu- 
factured by  natives  610 
Alexander,  Capt.  Boyd  341,  353,  368, 
468,  946  et  seq.,  949-53  et  seq. 

Alima  R.  1 16,  288 
Allan,  George  52,  720 

“ Alpine  ” vegetation  (in  the  Cameroons) 
48,  947  ; Fernando  Po,  etc.  947-8 
“ Alpine  ” vegetation  (Cameroons)  48, 
(Congo)  3 11 


Altitudes  188,  21 1,  271,  276,  278,  280-1, 
283,  296-9,  308,  310-11,  314-17.  336, 
337.  964 
Aluminium  241 

Ambaquistas,  the  78,  396,  538 
Ambas  Bay  (Cameroons)  2,  22,  37,  46,  60, 
946 

Ambriz  76,  90 
America,  U.S.  87,  475 

— and  Africa  158 

American  missionaries  87,  147,  268,  439, 
461,  4 66 

— negro,  the  37 

Amphibia  (and  Batrachia ) of  Congoland 
492,  929  et  seq.,  950 
Amsterdam  79 
Amulets  637,  662 
Anabas  935 

Ancestor  worship,  prayers  to  ancestors, 
etc.  620  et  seq. 

Ancistrophyllum  136,  14 1-2,  215,  901 
Andropogon  (Sorghum  and  allied  grasses) 
600,  602 

Anglo-Congolese  Treaty  of  1894  423,  437 
Angola  7 1,  78,  87,  182,  184,  345,  500, 
550,  606,  792,  879,  933 
Animism,  native  ideas  of  639  et  seq. 
Anklets  138,  585-7,  591 
Ankoro  313 

Anomalures,  the  Flying  341,  919,  948 
Anopheles  mosquitoes  23,  942 
Antelopes  48,  215,  320,  349,923^  seq.,  948 
Anthills  137,  167,  339,  938 
Anthropological  Institute,  Royal  616,  638, 
722,  766,  825,  887 

Anthropology  of  Congo  basin  492  et  seq., 

965 

Anthropoid  apes  666,  820,  912-13,  965 
Ants  230,  940-1 
Antwerp  73,  248,  417,  440 
Ape : see  Anthropoid 
Apocynacea,  Apocynaceous  trees  762 
Arabs  in  Central  Africa,  the  84,  124,  125, 
165,  179,  185-6,  318,  321-2,  327,  375, 
424  et  seq.  (the  Arab  War  in  Congoland), 
539  (the  physical  type  of  Arab  in 
Congoland)  ; their  introduction  of 
cultivated  plants,  600 ; influence  on 
native  architecture  743  ; harbourage 
of  insects,  943 


967 


968  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Arachis  600  : see  Ground-nuts 
Arachnids  549,  936-9 
Arachnoidia  945 

Architecture,  native  118,  119,  731  et  seq., 
753.  756,  759.  761  ; Arab  165 
Armour  (leather)  117,  129 
Armstrong,  Vice-Consul  468 
Arnot,  F.  S.  318-19,  416,  421,  423 
Aroids,  Arums  904-5 

Arrows  127,  142,  152,  507,  763,  767-9,  955 
Art,  negro  631,  633,  758-9,  800-13 
Arthington,  Robert  2,  6,  63,  95,  97 
et  seq.,  326 

Arthington  Falls,  the  92 

Arthington  Station  98,  102,  135,  145,  176, 

► 178 

Aruwimi  peoples  328  et  seq.,  351,  401, 
513,  542-5.  570.  720,  800-8,  829 
— river,  basin  124,  326  et  seq.,  335-7, 
910 

Ashanti  500 

Ashes  for  colouring  skin  561,  563 
Assagai,  the  769-71 

Association  Internationale  Africaine  111, 
1 2 1,  446 

“ Atrocities  ” 179,  378,  386  et  seq.,  421-2, 
433.  439.  443.  463.  466-8,  485 
Augouard,  Bishop  249 
Austen,  Mr.  E.  E.,  Prefatory  remarks,  550, 
942 

Austria,  Austro-Hungarians  102,  151,  165, 

185 

Australians,  the  black,  and  their  relation- 
ship with  negroes  665,  770 
Author,  the  (Sir  Harry  Johnston)  : Pre- 
fatory remarks  ; acquaintance  with  mis- 
sions and  missionaries  12,  13,  237  et  seq.; 
residence  in  West  Africa  10  et  seq.  ; 
experiences  on  the  Upper  Congo,  104, 
105,  174 ; on  negro  agriculture  and 
bush  fires  207  ; sketches  and  descrip- 
tions of  the  Congo  cataracts  276  et  seq.; 
on  the  birds  of  Tanganyika  321  ; share 
in  discovery  of  Okapi  and  Forest  Pig 
341  ; on  gorillas  and  chimpanzis 
344-5  ; on  the  races  and  languages 
of  the  upper  Ituri  and  Semliki  351 
et  seq.  ; on  the  Mundu  language  363 
et  seq.,  834  et  seq.;  own  experiences 
of  the  difficulties  of  Congo  travel 
prior  to  State  rule  397-8  ; Kiliman- 
jaro Expedition  and  Charles  Stokes 
429  ; on  the  achievements  of  the 
Belgians  and  Congo  State  employes 
448  ; sums  up  the  actions  of  King 
Leopold  in  regard  to  Congo  State  451 
et  seq.,  473-5  ; on  racial  divisions  and 
physical  characteristics  of  negroes  5 1 1 
et  seq.  ; on  the  name  “ Bayanzi  ” 529  ; 
on  the  “ sleeping  sickness  ” 54 7 et  seq.  ; 
on  smallpox  5 5 3-4  ; on  early  cooking 
and  the  commencement  of  fire  produc- 
tion 627-9  ; on  poison  and  other  ordeals 
689-92  ; on  drum-language-signalling 
721  ; on  the  shape  and  size  of  the  bow 
in  Central  Africa  768-9  ; on  the  Bantu 


languages,  their  origin  and  affinities 
826  et  seq. ; on  the  non-Bantu  languages 
of  Congoland  834  et  seq.  ; on  the  classi- 
fication of  the  Bantu  languages  851-4  ; 
on  their  prefixes  854-60  ; numerals  861 
et  seq.  ; on  the  Fernandian  language 
882  et  seq.  ; other  language  studies  887 
et  seq.,  889;  natural  history  notes  896  et 
seq.  ; Fernando  Po  946  et  seq. 

Avakubi  322,  327,  335-6,  342-4.  5°7 
Axes  122,  162,  627,  765,  775,  791-7  ; 
stone  498 

Azande : see  Nyamnyam,  Zande 

Ba-  prefix  in  Bantu  speech  69 
Baachinji  673 

Baamba  (Ruwenzori)  people  (see  also 
Kuamba)  513 
Baati  531,  785 

Babali  287,  302,  353,  513,  760,  863,  922 
Babangi : see  Bangi 
Babango : see  Bangobango 
Babati  359,  561,  829,  864 
Babili  354 

Babira,  Lubira  people  and  language  352, 
572»  597.  829.  862 
Babongo  pygmies  503 
Baboons  913-14 

Babuma,  Baboma  people  and  language 
109,  158,  301,  527,  561,  747,  868 
Babunda,  the  160,  161,  164,  527,  801 
Babusese,  Libusese  829,  831 
Babwende  284,  561-4,  584-5 
Badinga  160,  568 
Baert,  Capt.  337,  418,  663 
Bafoma  302 
Bafuru  (Apfuru)  301 
Bafwa  (tribal  prefix)  354 
Baganda : see  Uganda 
Bagenya  people  and  language  307,  323, 
462,  521,  570,  593  ; language  829,  855, 
865 

Baguha,  Kiguha,  people  and  language 
324,  514,  830,  874 
Bagunda  people  354 
Baholo : see  Holo 

Bahr-al-Ghazal  350,  435,  437,  767,  800 
Bahuana  people  and  language  160,  527, 
53i.  55i.  564.  575-7.  615,  641,  652,  655, 
683,  816,  877 

Bahuku  (Lihuku)  people  and  language 
352,  829  ; see  also  Lihuku 
Bahusi  420 
Baieu  people  359 

Baila  people  and  language  558,  635 
Bailundo  442 
Bajande  356,  731,  752 
Bakango  359,  572 

Bakanzanzi  sect  (Balaba)  405  et  seq.,  670 
Bakele  (see  principally  Lokele)  302,  354, 
870 

Bakete  162,  405,  524,  654 
Bakiokwa  359,  835,  862,  866 
Bakoa,  Bakwa  508 

Bakonjo  people  and  language  310,  513, 
831,  872-3 


INDEX 


Bakuba  people  and  language  162,  194, 
462,  515,  523,  561,  569,  593,  595,  659 
et  seq.,  671,  685,  699,  701,  773-5,  803  ; 
language  866-8 

— arts  and  industries  162,  515,  803,  807, 
81 1 

Bakumu  people  and  language  353,  573, 
833,  845,  862 

Bakundu  people  and  language  (Camer- 
oons)  30,  870,  889 

— (S.E.  Congoland)  324,  420 

Bakusu  (Manyema)  people  124,  159,  324, 
571,  866 

Bakusu,  Lokusu  of  Stanley  Falls ; 

language  865 
Bakuti  301,  530 

Bakutu,  Bankutu  145,  148,  159,  527 
Bakwa  (tribal  prefix)  354  ; tribe  of  N.E. 
Ituri  829 

Bakwesi,  Bakwese  160,  16 1,  324,  591,  673, 
703-4,  799 

Bakwiri  people  and  language  (Cameroons) 
27  et  seq.,  29,  42,  46,  870-1,  889 
Balala  325 
Balali  284 

Balega,  Barega,  Bulega,  Kilega,  Mwalega ; 
country,  language,  and  people  308, 
323,  514,  655,  830,  852,  873 
Balese  people  and  language  328,  351,  573, 
597-  755  ; language  829,  831,  863 
Balfour,  Prof.  Henry  722 
Bali  people  and  language  (N.  Cameroons) 
766,  813,  833,  871,  889 
Bali  R.  436 
Balia  350,  503 
Balila  504 

Baloi  people  148,  301,  362,  572,  579 

— “ waistcoats  ” 129,  597 
Balolo : see  Lolo 

Balomotwa  (Cave-dwellers)  317,  324,  420, 
726,  966 
Balovale  708 

Balua,  Barua  (see  Luba)  160 
Baluba  (see  Luba,  Lua)  324,  462,  584 
Baluchi  traders  in  E.  Congoland  539 
Baluti  (Mississippi  boy)  328 
Bamanga  people  and  languages  322  et  seq., 
353.  360,  364,  513,  536,  769,  775,  826-8, 
833-4,  845-51,  890-1,  966 
Bamangi  528 

Bambala  160,  525,  527-8,  529-30,  562, 
575.  585.  593.  609,  615-16,  670,  766,  77 1, 
8 77 

Bambare  mountains  310 
Bamboli  people  and  language  302,  513,  865 
Bamboos  48,  594,  902-4,  964 
Bambute  pygmies  331-3,  350-2,  501, 
835  et  seq. 

Bambutu,  Wambutu,  Mombutu  people, 
language  835,  83 6 et  seq.  : see  Mombutu 
Bamfunu  or  Bambuno  15 1,  152,  287,  301, 
527.  564 

Bamongo : see  Mongo 
Bamoye  no,  301 
Bampende,  Bapindi  160 
Bamu,  island  of  103,  286 


969 

Banalya  (Aruwimi)  334,  351,  513,  753-4. 
798 

Banana,  the  132,  137,  600-7,  612;  fibre 
593.  906,  958 

Banana  Point  266,  280,  410,  413 
“ Banana,”  river  of  (Lower  Congo  in  past 
ages)  280 
Banande  328,  352 

Banda  people,  languages  366,  573,  832, 
834.  966 

Bangala,  Mangala,  Ngala  people  and 
language  113,  1 1 5 , 121,  302,  399,  401, 
462,  512,  528,  531  et  seq.,  561-4,  571 
et  seq.,  628-30,  649,  655,  748-51,  768, 
773,  814  et  seq.,  821,  867,  889 
Bangasu  (sultan,  place)  365,  419,  580,  674 
Bangata,  Wangata  people  113,  528,  530, 
537,  649 

Bangba  people  353,  534,  890 
Bangi  (Ba-,  Bo-,  Lobo-)  country,  people, 
and  language  105  et  seq.,  139,  159,  287, 
301,  512,  528,  530,  654,  708  et  seq.,  724, 
747  ; language  856,  867,  879 
Bangles  586,  591 
Bangodi  148,  568 

Bangobango  people  433-4,  554,  890 
Bangongo  160 
Bangulungulu  1 5 1 
Bangweulu,  Lake  81,  314,  317,  437 
Bankusu  (Manyema)  158-9:  see  Bakusu 
Banning,  M.  Emile  408 
Ban  oho  language  ; Bapuku  (Father  G.  P. 
Adams)  857,  889 

Bantu  border  line  134,  363-4,  826 

— civilization  (renaissance)  194,  320,  701, 
724-5,  771  et  seq.,7%9,  798  et  seq.,  806 

— languages  28,  30,  70,  323-4,  359,  5*4. 
826  et  seq.,  851  et  seq.  ; languages  of  the 
First  Invasion  829  et  seq.,  851,  885  et  seq., 
955  ; of  the  Second  Invasion  829  et  seq., 
851,  872;  of  the  Third  Invasion  831, 
851,  872-3;  principal  foci  of  851-4; 
prefixes  of  854  et  seq.,  886  ; names  for 
domestic  animals  878-9  ; bibliography 
887-91  ; phonology  879-81 

— negroes  398,  512 

Bantu,  Non-,  languages  831  et  seq. 
Bantu,  Semi-,  peoples  and  languages  371, 
558,  826-7,  833,  871-2,  884 
Banunu,  no,  301,  530,  585 
Banza  people  and  language  134,  340, 
360-2,  512,  571-3,  582,  632,  652,  677, 
760-1,  779,  831  et  seq.,  838  et  seq.,  966 
Banziri  people  371,  402,  512,  651,  686, 
832-3,  966 

Banzyville  129,  347,  418,  787 
“ Bao,”  game  of  121 
Baobab  tree  64,  153,  905 
Baphia  trees  560,  906 
Bapindi  (Bampende)  160,  625,  804 
Bapoto  (see  also  Poto)  or  Baputu  pygmies 
145,  301,  504 
Baptist  College,  Bristol  2 
Baptist  Missionary  Society  of  England  9, 
10,  12,  16 

— birth  of  t8 


970  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Baptist  Missionary  Society,  work  in  Fer- 
nando Po  19  et  seq.,  963 

— Cameroons  28  et  seq.,  34,  56,  60  et  seq. 

— on  the  Congo  63,  85,  87,  90,  no,  222 
et  seq.,  447,  465-6 

— information  re  sleeping  sickness  548 

— relations  with  Portuguese  180,  182 

— relations  with  Congo  State  186,  447, 
467 

— death  roll  of  its  agents  on  the  Congo 
222  et  seq. 

— industrial  teaching  of  35,  41,  237,  243, 
24  7 

— relations  with  other  missions  on  the 
Congo  90,  249 

— and  the  Congo  Railway  272 

— attempts  to  join  hands  with  other 
missionary  societies  on  the  east  of  the 
Congo  326-7 

— Lord  Mountmorres  on  B.M.  work, 
Upper  Congo  331 

Bapulula  113,  399 
Baramba,  Balamba  324,  420 
Barbosa  de  Bocage  946,  948  et  seq. 

“ Baregga,”  see  Balega  and  Lega 
Bari  : root- word  for  “ river  ”286 
Bark:  cloth  (see  Bast)  129,  589-91,  806, 
905  ; for  roofing,  building,  etc.,  123, 
731,  760,  810 

— for  medicine  or  poison  197,  557 
Barleycorn,  Rev.  John  25,  885,  890,  961 
Barombi,  country,  people,  dialect  (Cam- 
eroons) 41,  52,  857,  870-1 

Barotse  888 

Barttelot,  Major  172,  179 
Barua  324,  658 
Barumbe  (Mubangi)  132 
Barumbe,  Barumbi,  Barumbo  (more  or 
less  pygmies,  North-Central  Congo- 
land)  132,  145,  302,  504 
Barundo  people  and  language  30,  830, 
856,  870-1 

Basa,  country  and  language  (Cameroons) 
34,  870 

Basanga  316,  324,  419,  726 
Basamba  160,  164.  324 
Basel  Mission  30,  61  et  seq. 

Bashilange  people  159,  160,  523,  527,  601, 
607-8 

Bashilele  people  160,  740-1 
Basket-work  800,  807-8 
Basoko  country,  place  292,  299,  302,  374, 
403,  432,  554,  798 

— people : see  Soko 

Basonge  people  and  language  159,  441-2, 
5i6,  57i 

Basongo,  Basongomeno  people  and  lan- 
guage I 5 I,  159,  160,  323,  405,  5 20;  571, 
868,.  871 

Bast  (bark  cloth)  123,  139,  156,  354,  356, 
589,  593,  806,  809 

— for  weaving  (palm  fibre)  157,  593,  802, 
809,  899 

Bastian,  Dr.  75 

Basundi  people  and  languages  77,  284, 
564,  668 


Batabwa  (see  Kitabwa)  324,  636 
Batamba  country  145 
Bateke,  Teke  people  and  language  (origin 
of  name  77,  637)  106,  177-8,  284,  287, 
301,  396,  399,  504,  526,  529,  564,  584-5, 
616,  653,  658,  685,  700,  724,  732,  790-1, 
803-5  ; language  829,  855-8,  869,  887 
— (of  the  Kasai)  163,  523-4 
Batembo  324;  Batende  no,  301,  627 
Bates,  Mr.  G.  L.,  Prefatory  remarks,  503, 
835,  889-91,  922 

Batetela  158,  159,  405,  428,  431  et  seq., 
438,  520,  563,  866 
Baths  (medical)  557 

Bats  of  the  Congo  917  ; of  Fernando  Po 
948 

Battell,  Andrew  71,  78,  792 
Batwa  pygmies  145,  161-2,  302,  350,  352, 
504,  507,  835 

Baumann,  Oskar  25,  100,  946-7,  953, 
95  6 et  seq. 

Bavili  816,  817 
Bavinza  323 
Bavumbo  519-20 
Bawumbu  287 

Baya  peoples,  language  371,  503,  512, 
700,  766,  813,  832,  889 
Bayaga  503 

Bayaka  160,  161,  195,  301,  524,  527,  548, 
572,  575,  584,  598,  636,  640-1,  653,  670, 
685,  77 1,  774,  805-6,  877 
Bayanzi  (see  also  Bangi)  105,  139,  143, 
158,  160,  167,  168,  301,  396,  528-9, 
539-43,  55L  56i,  567  et  seq.,  575,  583 
et  seq.,  598,  623-4,  638,  655  et  seq., 
741-2,  773-6,  781-4,  806 
Baynes,  A.  H.,  Prefatory  remarks  9,  327, 
440 

Beads  139,  368,  559,  582,  790  et  seq.  ; 

native-made,  591,  790,  957 
Beans  361,  600,  607 

Beards  138,  145,  350,  366,  504,  532,  535, 
577  et  seq.,  585 
Bebaya’a  503 
Becker,  Lieut.  425,  436 
Beecroft,  Capt.  21 
Beer  361,  606,  61 1 
Beerst,  Rev.  Father  De  887 
Bees  349,  612,  939 
Beetles  405,  613,  943-4 
Belgarde,  Abbe  74 

Belgians,  King  of  the : see  Leopold  II 
Belgium,  Belgians  73,  82,  107,  197,  248, 
326-7,  346,  348,  378,  409,  417  et  seq., 

422,  424  et  seq.,  430,  435  et  seq.,  441, 

448,  451  et  seq.,  455,  462,  468  et  seq., 

473-5,  481-2,  486,  491,  655  et  seq.,  670 

Bell,  Capt.  Maurice  432,  433 
Bell,  King  (Cameroons)  29,  30  et  seq.,  51, 
59 

Bellows,  591,  801-2 

Bemba,  Ba-  (Awemba),  people  and  lan- 
guage 325,  830,  844,  874 
Bena  (meaning  of  this  tribal  prefix)  354, 
684 

Bena  Kamba  354 


INDEX 


Bena-mulumbo,  Kabombo,  the  726 
Bena  Lulua  354,  887 
Benga  889 

Benguela  78,  421,  550 
Benin  : country,  people,  river  14,  20, 
804 

Bentley,  Dr.  Holman,  B.M.S.,  Prefatory 
remarks  16,  64,  85,  89,  90,  95  et  seq., 
151,  168,  170,  172  et  seq.,  181,  222,  276, 
281,  391,  393  et  seq.,  399,  492,  529, 
551-2,  575  et  seq.,  643,  667-8,  672, 
708,  731,  825,  857,  890,  904 

— Mrs.  Holman  174,  224 

Benue  R.  region  (languages)  827,  833, 
884-5 

Beri-beri  disease  487,  554,  692 
Beringer,  Mr.  Oscar  344 
Berlin  Conference,  Berlin  Act  417,  446-7, 
459,  473 

Berthon  boats  203 
Bertrand,  M.  468 
Bethel  Station  (Cameroons)  30 
Bia,  Capt.  423 

Biggs,  Mr.  J.  E.,  B.M.S.  226 
Bihe  421,  422 

Billington,  Rev.  A.,  A.B.M.U.  166 
Bimbia  (Cameroons)  27  et  seq.,  36,  60, 
663 

Binger,  Mons.  L.  G.  55,  493 
Binnie,  Mr.  410 

Birds  of  the  Congo  basin  51,  153,  167, 
242-3,  267-8,  279,  321,  492,  927,  965  ; 
of  Fernando  Po  949  et  seq. 

Birmingham  and  Grenfell,  Prefatory  re- 
marks 1,  9,  100 
Birth  customs  671  et  seq. 

Bisa  or  Wisa,  Aba-,  Awa-,  people  and 
language  318,  325,  874 
Bishops  179,  249 
Bishop  Taylor’s  Mission  228 
Bixia  trees  (Arnatto),  dyes  560 
Blacksmiths  122,  139,  237,  360,  517-18, 
671,  801-6 

Blackwater  fever  106,  224,  226,  336,  374, 
942 

Bleek,  the  late  Dr.  W.  I.  826,  854,  857 
Blood  brotherhood  113,  686-8 

— drinking,  cooking  402 
Bloeme,  Mr.  De  87 

Boats,  native  (Mubangi  R.)  787-8 
Bodson,  Capt.  419,  422-3 
Body,  mutilations  of  353-4,  571 

— painting:  see  Colouring 
Bohm  (German  explorer)  83,  416 
Bolobo  105,  no,  173,  229,  249  et  seq., 

383  et  seq.,  410,  451,  543,  647,  690-1 
Boloko  R.  (Lomami)  125,  127 
Boma  80,  178,  188,  269-70,  271,  414 
Bomangi  122 

Bombax  (cotton)  trees  137,  153,  241,  242, 
905 

Bomili  501 

Bomokandi  R.  347,  436,  500 
Bonchamps,  Marquis  de  419 
Bondonga  people  (see  Ndonga)  571 
Bongo  people  366  et  seq.,  832 


971 

Bongo  Tragelaph  ( Bodcercus ) 341,  357, 
923 

Bon  jo  people  362,  571 
Bonken  language  30,  870 
Boomerang,  traces  of  the  765-7 
Bopoto  (see  also  Poto)  country  and 
B.M.S.  settlement  122,  290,  337,  349, 
402,  535,  565  et  seq.,  645,  760,  781-2, 
796,  81 1 

Borassus  palms  103,  137,  153,  289,  294, 
601,  610-11,  897-8 
Bos  (cattle)  623 

Botany  of  the  Congo  State  491,  896-906 
et  seq.,  964 

Boulders,  strewn  over  “ coasts  ” of 
ancient  Congo  lake  155 
Boulenger,  Mr.  G.  A.,  Prefatory  remarks 
491-2,  931,  933 

Bow,  Bow  and  Arrow  113,  139,  140, 
143-4,  167,  354,  507,  723,  768-9,  955 
Bow,  the  musical  716,  723,  955 
Boxes  made  of  bark  810 
Bracelets  138,  368,  585 
Brass  151,  167,  368,  585,  792 

— rods  102,  122,  138,  144,  790  et  seq. 
Brazil,  Brazilians  29,  32,  78,  96,  574 
Brazza,  De : see  De  Brazza 
Brazzaville  102 

Brick-making  35,  247,  250 
Bricusse,  Lieut.  436 
Bristol  2,  97,  222 
Bristol,  the  sailing  boat  257 
British  Central  Africa  419,  769,  773,  888, 
890 

British  consuls  and  consular  reports  on 
Congo  467-8,  478 

British  Government,  the : and  Fernando 
Po  20  et  seq.  ; and  Cameroons  20,  59 
et  seq.  ; and  the  Congo  78,  80  et  seq.,  423, 
430,  437,  438  et  seq.  ; and  the  Sudan 
436  ; in  general  455,  456-7,  475 
British  Medical  Journal  552 
British  Museum  74,  492,  550 
British  South  Africa  Chartered  Company 
457 

Brotherhoods  644 

Brown,  Rev.  J.  G.,  B.M.S.  166 

Bruce,  Lieut. -Col.  Sir  David  549,  552 

— Lady  552 

Brusciotto,  G.  di  Vetralla  74 
Brussels  82,  186,  326,  379,  409,  447,  473 

— Conference,  Act  417,  452 
Bua  pygmies  175,  302,  350,  507 
Buaka  : see  Bwaka 

Bube  language  and  people  (Fernando  Po) 
21,  24  et  seq.,  624,  724  ; language  855-8, 
882  et  seq.,  889,  946  et  seq.,  951  et  seq., 
(origin  of  name)  954 
Bubu  people  370,  829,  832,  966 
Buffalo  117,  169,  243,  271,  277,  320,  349, 

574,  597,  925,  948,  949,  956 
Bugs  233,  732,  943 
Buildings,  native  535,  728  et  seq. 

Buja,  Abuja  : country,  language,  and 
people  359,  478,  528,  531,  599 
Bukatulaka  Channel  290,  372 


972  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Bukonjo  310 
Bukumu  310 
“ Bula  Matadi  ” 444-5 
Buliminus  935 
Bull-roarers  665-6 
Bulu  people  869,  891 
Buma,  Boma : see  Babuma 
Bumba  123,  416,  731 
Bunga  238,  262,  264,  288 
Bungudi  186,  261,  262,  328,  681 
Bunkeia  419,  421-2 
Bunyembe,  Busembe  (Mubangi)  129 
Burdett-Coutts,  Baroness  408 
Burgh,  Father  Van  der  889 
Burial  murders  and  ceremonies  1 39, 
250  et  seq.,  382  et  seq.,  386  et  seq.,  649 
et  seq.,  655  et  seq.,  954 
Burning  scars  to  ornament  skin  570 
Burrows,  Capt.  Guy  344,  888 
Burton,  Sir  Richard  35,  38,  47,  68,  80, 
425,  946 

Busese  : see  Babusese 
Bush-schools  665-6 

Bushman  race,  the  498  et  seq.,  508,  51 1, 
524,  561,  726,  828,  9 66 
Busira  R.  117,  140 
Busoga  547-8 
Butage,  Rev.  Father  195 
Butterflies  136,  943 

Biittner,  Dr.  (German  explorer)  172,  197 
Bwajiri  people  366,  780-1,  832 
Bwaka,  Buaka  367,  402,  652,  781,  832 
Bwela,  country,  people,  language  338,  344, 
357.  359,  404.  528,  531,  538,  749,  867 

Cabra,  Commt.  492 
Cajanus  607 
Calabar,  Old  52 

Calamus  palms  126,  136,  140  et  seq.,  153, 
901 

Cam,  Diogo  (discoverer  of  the  Congo  R.) 
70 

Cambier,  Capt.  409 

— Pere  887 

Cameron,  Rev.  G.  R.  R.,  B.M.S.  223 

— V.  L.  (explorer)  82,  658,  743,  816 
Cameron  Falls  310,  312,  912 
Cameroons,  the  (country,  district)  2, 

27  etseq.,  503  etseq.,  617-18,  663,  720-1, 
766,  813 

— fauna,  flora  of  46-9  et  seq. 

— languages  27,  826  et  seq., 833,  856  et  seq., 
879.  883-5,  889 

— mountain  28,  38  et  seq.,  45  et  seq.,  48, 
947 

— Little  Peak  of  46 

— people  of  89,  92,  95,  100,  503  et  seq., 
558,  720 

— river  or  estuary  27,  43 
Camoensia  flower  242,  906 
Camwood  bark,  powder  145,  560,  659 
Canada  (and  Nova  Scotia)  381,  419 
Cannecattim,  Father  B.  M.  de  75 
Cannibalism  121,  124,  140,  145,  161,  173, 

363.  37L  398  et  seq.,  429,  614,  616,  657 
Canoes  127,  138,  314,  401,  522,  786-8,  958 


Canoe-travel  104,  105 
Cape  of  Good  Hope  76 
“ Cape-to-Cairo  ” 76 
Capello  and  Ivens  421,  888,  899 
Capital  of  Congo  State  should  be  at 
Stanley  Pool  178 

Caps,  head-dresses  145,  160,  579,  597-9, 
758 

Capsicum  pepper  78 
Capuchins  on  the  Congo  72  et  seq.,  75 
Carey,  William  (the  missionary)  18 
Carpentering,  native  809-10 
Carrie,  P£re,  Monseigneur  90 
Carvalho,  Henrique  de  138,  185,  193,  194, 
208,  396,  508,  563,  595,  888 
Carving,  native  208,  628,  630,  744,  806, 
809-1 1 

Casement,  Consul  R.  378,  440,  468 
Cassar,  Lieut.  427 
Cassia  shrubs  906 
Castor  oil  557 

Cataract  region  (West  Congo)  97,  188, 
190-2,  270  et  seq. 

Caterpillars  143,  198,  233,  613 
Cathedral  at  San  Salvador  85,  88 
Catholic  (Roman)  Missions,  missionaries 
12,  72  et  seq.,  90,  249,  251-2,  254,  305, 
4 66,  471-2,  963 

Cats  341,  918-19  ; Golden  Cat  918-19 
Cat’s-cradle  71 1 
Cattier,  M.  Felicien  468 
Cattle,  cows  197,  205,  207,  210,  31 1,  620 
et  seq.,  878-9,  956 

Caucasian  Races  in  Africa  84,  353,  558 ; 
in  the  Congo  basin  353,  512  et  seq.,  528, 
537 

Cave-dwellers,  dwellings  316-17,  420, 

726-7 

Centipedes,  937 
Century  Magazine  438 
Cephalophus  antelopes  925,  948-9 
Ceratorrhina  944 
Cerckel,  Sergt.,  Lieut.  427 
Cercopithecus , Cercopithecince  (Monkeys) 
341,  914-16,  948 
Chafukuma,  Mt.  316-17 
Chaillu,  Paul  du  889 
Chairs,  native  145,  809 
Chaltin,  Commt.  436,  437 
Chambezi  R.  81,  313-14 
Chameleons  819,  928,  950 
Charcoal  557,  561,  628-30,  659 
Charms  637  et  seq. 

Charters,  Dr.,  B.M.S.  173 
Chatelain,  Dr.  Heli  888 
“ Chenal  ” the  (Narrow  Congo,  Kwa- 
mouth  to  Stanley  Pool)  287,  446 
Chevalier,  M.  Auguste  686,  799,  829, 
897,  905,  909,  922,  929,  931,  939-41 
Chevrotain,  Water  321,  923 
“ Chicote,”  the  (a  whip  for  flogging)  467 
Chiefs,  in  Congoland  and  in  Africa  gener- 
ally 145,  244,  658  et  seq.,  68 7,  697-8, 
699  et  seq.,  704  ; in  Fernando  Po  960-1 
Children,  the  treatment  of,  life  of  31,  246, 
672-3  et  seq.,  709,  71 1,  820,  954 


INDEX 


973 


Chimpanzi,  the  78,  341,  344-6,  632,  718, 
780,  820-1,  912  et  seq. 

Chinese,  the  473,  488 
Chinko  or  Shinko  R.  348,  436 
Cholet,  M.  (French  explorer)  107 
Chopo  R.  302-3,  322,  353 
Christ,  images  of,  in  West  Congoland  86, 
161 

Christianity  : commencement  of,  in 
Congoland  70,  72,  75,  85  ; as  explained 
to  the  Kiamvo  201  ; in  general  238, 
252 

Chrysichthys  362,  934 
Chumbiri  109 

Church,  Catholic,  Roman  12,  56,  72  et  seq., 
249 

Church  of  England  14 
Church  Missionary  Society  12,  56,  327, 
429 

Cicatrization  (scar-tatuing,  skin  carv- 
ing) 118,  123,  138,  139,  143-4,  145.  I5C 
562,  564  et  seq.,  953,  954 
Cicev  607 

Circumcision  192,  363,  575-6,  666,  954 
Citharinus  congicus  178,  934 
Civets  919,  948 

Clarence  Peak  (F.  Po)  21,  45,  947 
Clarence,  Port  (F.  Po)  19  et  seq.,  22  et  seq., 
947-8 

Clark,  Mrs.  M.  466 

Clark,  Rev.  J.  A.,  B.M.S.  224 

— Mrs.,  B.M.S.  246 

Clarke,  Rev.  John,  B.M.S.  10,  19  et  seq., 
882,  883,  890,  946-9,  960-1 
Clay  153,  206,  561,  630;  used  for  build- 
ing 356,  728,  731,  744,  747,  758,  799 
Clement  de  St.  Marcq,  Lieut.  418 
Climate  of  the  Congo  226  et  seq.,  491,  892-4 
Cloth,  native  156-7,  164,  175,  593-4,  758, 
802-6 

Clothing,  native  fashions  in  138,  160, 
209,  244,  558,  587  et  seq.,  594 
Clozel,  M.  (French  explorer)  107,  889 
Clubs  (wooden)  144,  774,  955 
Cockroaches  230,  938 
Cocoa  (“  grateful,  comforting  ”)  102,  227, 
962 

Coconut  palm  601,  896 
Coffee  107,  227,  602,  910 
Collars  (brass,  copper,  iron)  111,  1 5 1 , 
585-9 

Colle,  Rev.  Father  814,  825 
Collet,  Lieut.  427 
Collignon,  Lieut.  427 
Colobus  monkeys  of  the  Congo  138,  267, 
597.  599,  9i4,  948 
Colocasia  aroids  (yams)  958 
Colombaroli,  Rev.  Father  841,  844,  888 
Colouring  the  body  114,  123,  142,  145, 
I5L  337>  354>  395»  5^0  et  seq.,  655,  667, 
679,  953 

Colours  of  the  water  of  the  Congo  and  its 
tributaries  112,  116,  128,  150,  287,  290, 
335“6 

Comber  family,  the  224 
Comber,  Rev.  Percy,  B.M.S.  224 


Comber,  Dr.  Sydney,,  B.M.S.  224 

— Rev.  Thomas  J.,  B.M.S.  2,  41,  et  seq., 
51,  63  et  seq.,  68,  85,  87,  89,  91  et  seq., 
97,  109  et  seq.,  128,  223,  224,  226 

Combretum  (shrub)  906 
Combs,  native  586 

Comite  d’ Etudes  du  Haut  Congo  90, 
409-10,  446,  451-2 

Commerce  between  negro  tribes  789  et  seq. 
Commissions  for  protection  of  natives  or 
inquiry  into  misdoings  377-8,  440-1, 

465 

Companies,  Concessionnaire  318,  417, 
439,  445,  451  et  seq.,  454,  458  ; enum- 
erated and  described  476-80,  539  et  seq. 
Conference  of  missionaries  at  Stanley 
Pool,  1906  381 

Conglomerate  formations  117,  128-9,  140, 
1 56,  289,  894  et  seq. 

Congo  Independent  State  4 et  seq.,  8, 
87,  186,  187-9,  333-4;  Grenfell’s 

opinions  on  it  375  et  seq.,  480-4  ; 
foundation  of  409  et  seq.  ; and  Katanga 
419-23  ; and  the  Sudan  435-7  ; an- 
nexation by  Belgium  437-8  ; condition 
in  1907  441  et  seq.  ; origin  of  name  445  ; 
monopoly  of  land  446  ; its  employes 
448  ; work  of  273,  486,  491  ; obstruc- 
tion of  missionary  societies  446-7  ; 
lack  of  statesmanship  447-8  ; finances 
45 1 et  seq.  ; treatment  of  officials  484 ; 
.good  work  of  473,  486,  491 
Congo-Balolo  Mission  254,  439,  461,  465 
Congo  kingdom  and  people  : see  Kongo 
Congo  lake,  the  ancient  109,  129,  155, 
280,  348  ; ancient  Congo  plateau  288 
Congo  loans  418,  451-2 
Congo  Museum  451,  491  et  seq.,  632-3, 
713,  810-12,  922 

Congo  peoples,  the,  viewed  generally 
724-5 

Congo  Railway,  the  188,  272,  418 
Congo  Reform  Association  440 
Congo,  River,  70  (discovery  of),  80 ; 
cataract  region  of  188,  190-2,  270  et  seq. ; 
channel  between  Stanley  Pool  and 
Kwamouth  103  et  seq.,  287-8  ; above 
Bolobo  106,  109  et  seq.,  111,  115,  288  ; 
Bangala  and  beyond  118,  289  et  seq.  ; 
above  Aruwimi  confluence  292-4 ; 
broadest  parts  of  123,  290  ; estuary  of 
266-7  J narrowest  parts  of  277,  282  ; 
history  of  “ Banana  ” river  outlet  280  ; 
native  names  of  the  Congo  283  ; rise 
and  fall  of  levels  283,  299  ; altitudes  of 
the  Congo  283,  296-9  ; colour  of  the 
river  water  287  ; its  current,  channels, 
etc.  no,  in,  259-63,  266  et  seq.,  271, 
285,  292-4,  299  ; islands  and  sand- 
banks 106,  no,  123,  257-63,  267,  286, 
289,  290,  294  ; the  rank  of  its  tribu- 
taries 265;  the  Congo  a barrier  to  spread 
of  mammalian  fauna  344-5 
Congoland,  Central  539 

— Lower  or  Western  539,  548 
Conifers  947 


974  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Cooking,  the  art  of,  in  Congoland  627 
et  seq. 

Copal  gum  136,  175,  176,  813,  909 
Copper  123,  129,  349,  356,  368,  536,  585, 
757.  77 1.  790-803,  805,  895 
Coquilhat  (Belgian  administrator)  ; Co- 
quilhatville  105,  400,  410 
Corpse,  decoration  of  645,  649,  653 
Corpse-eating  398,  405-7,  645,  649,  652 
Cornet,  Dr.  317,  932 
Cornwall  j,  20 

Cottingham,  Rev.  W.  F.,  B.M.S.  225 

Cotton  109,  129,  590,  806,  908 

Cotton,  Major  Powell  341 

Court  of  Equity  in  the  Cameroon  s 5 5 

Cow,  names  for  878-9 

Cowe,  Rev.  Alex.,  B.M.S.  225 

Crabs  268,  936,  950 

Crampel,  Paul  97,  99,  503 

Cranes,  Crowned  167,  321,  927 

Crater  lakes,  craters  947 

Craven,  Mr.  Henry  63 

Crawcraw  362 

Crayfish  613,  672,  936,  958 

Crespel,  Capt.  409 

Crickets  233 

Crinum  lilies  126,  242,  906-7 
Cristal,  Serra  do,  Monts  du  (Crystal 
Mountains)  280,  892,  et  seq. 

Crocodiles  105,  1 1 5,  138,  153,  167,  228, 
268,  494  et  seq.,  564,  613,  780,  821-2, 
929.  950 

Cross,  the  (as  symbol  or  ornament)  570, 
769,  81 1 

Cross  River  (Old  Calabar)  21  ; languages 
833,  856,  884-5 
Crossbow,  the  766-7 

Crucifixes,  crosses,  in  Western  Congoland 
85,  86,  160,  188 

Crudgington,  Rev.  H.  E.,  B.M.S.  85,  89, 
95 

Cruickshank,  Rev.  Andrew,  B.M.S.  225 
Crustacea  of  the  Congo  basin  936 
Cucumbers  109 
Culcasia  aroids  905 
Culex  941-2 
Culture,  Negro  813 
Cunningham,  Prof.  D.  J.  527 
Cunnington,  Dr.  W.  H.  936,  944,  945 
Cups,  native  628-9 

Currency,  articles  of  397,  490,  790  et 
seq. 

Current  of  rivers:  Congo  no,  hi,  270 
et  seq.,  285,  287  ; Mubangi  129  ; Lu- 
longo  137  ; Kasai  150,  153;  Sankuru 
153  ; Lukenye  169  ; Mfini  167  ; Aru- 
wimi,  335 
Cycads  905 

Cyrtosperma  arums  153,  905 

Daenen,  Lieut.  436 
Daens,  M.  468 
Daggers  776,  778 

Damaraland,  the  Damara  peoples  525, 
623,  852-3 
Dambasi  people  780 


Dances,  dancing  142,  202,  331-2,  405-7, 
665  et  seq.,  703-5  et  seq.,  713  et  seq., 
959-60 

Dancing  women,  professional  560,  703, 
7i5 

Darby,  Rev.  R.  D.,  B.M.S.  183,  254 
Darfur  436 

Darling,  Rev.  F.  C.,  B.M.S.  226 
Darters  153 
Date  palms,  wild  897 
David,  Dr.  J.  (pygmy  language)  835,  888 
Dead,  the  world  of  the,  the  spirit  world 
643 

Deane,  Capt.  165,  166,  171 
Death  (ceremonies,  customs,  beliefs)  208, 
643  et  seq.,  954 

De  Brazza,  L.  Savorgnan  56,  84,  91,  95, 
96,  107,  1 16,  408,  453 
— Jacques  107 
Debruyne,  Lieut.  425,  429 
Decency,  indecency  716-17 
Declercq,  Rev.  P&re  A.  887,  889 
Delanghe,  Capt.  436,  437 
Delcommune,  A.  315,  419,  453 
Delcommune  Falls  315 
Delhez,  M.  492 
Demons,  belief  in  636  et  seq. 

Dendi  people  366 
Denmark,  Danes  18,  381 
Dennett,  Mr.  R.  E.  816,  825,  889 
Depilation  532,  578 

Depopulation  of  Congoland  under  State 
government  380,  539-40 
Dervishes  of  the  Sudan  436,  437 
Descamps,  Capt.  427,  433,  492 
Devil  (the  Real)  463,  636,  942 
Dew&vre,  M.  A.  491 

Dhanis,  Baron  190,  196,  310,  347,  426 
et  seq.,  428,  431,  453,  466-7 
Dido,  Chief  (Cameroons)  29 
Dikuluwe  R.  422 
Dilanga  126 

Dilke,  Sir  Charles  377,  439 
Diseases,  native  362,  547  et  seq.,  (list  of) 
556,  954,  965 
Dishes,  native  627,  630 
Distichodus  492,  935 
Divination  664 
Divorce  676 

Doctors,  native  (medicine-men,  sorcerers, 
etc.)  395,  663 

Dog,  the  domestic  507,  614,  616,  619,621, 
762-3,  776-8,  821 
Doggett,  Mr.  W.  G.  341 
Dogs,  wild  349 
Dolichos  607 

“ Domaine  de  la  Couronne,”  the  440, 
451-2,  454,  457,  459,  478,  539  et  seq. 

“ Domaine  Prive  ” (now  Domaine  Nation- 
al), the  454,  478 
Domestic  animals  616  et  seq. 

Donckier,  Lieut.  437 
Dongo  people  (Mubangi)  362-3 
Donkeys  190 
Doorm,  Capt.  426-7 
Dorcathevium  614 


INDEX 


Douville  (French  explorer)  80 

Dover  Cliffs  (Stanley  Pool)  102,  104,  286 

Dracaenas  174,  905 

Dravidian  element  in  Eastern  Congoland 

539 

Drinking  ceremonies  704 
Droughts  300 

Drums  142,  709,  718  et  seq. 

— friction  394,  666,  710,  719,  722 

— signalling  719-22 
Drunkenness  among  natives  609-10 
Dua  River  (Wele)  133;  (Mongala)  337, 

760 

Du  ala  people  and  language  27  et  seq.,  31, 
35>  5 !.  576,  663,  720-1,  764;  language 
870,  885,  889 

Dubois,  M.  Alphonse  292,  927 
Duchesne,  Lieut.  430 
Ducks  78,  153,  321,  620 
Dunart,  Lieut.  197 
Duparquet,  Pere  12,  90 
Dutch,  the,  in  the  Congo  71,  72,  84,  91, 
417 

Dutch  trading  house  (A.  H.  V.)  64,  65, 
91,  185,  262,  417 
Dysentery  224,  487,  547,  554 

Ears,  mutilation  of,  earrings  123,  129, 
355.  572-3 
Earth-eating  615 
Earth-worms  929,  944 
Ebony  906 

Eddie,  Mr.,  A.B.M.U.  149 
Ediya  (Fernandian)  922,  954 
Edward  VII,  King  456,  457 
Edwin  Arnold  River  279 
Efik  people,  language  52 
Egrets  104,  927 

Egypt,  Egyptians  512,  515,  525,  617, 
722-3,  766,  791,  799-800,  934 
Egypt,  Government  of  492 
Egyptian  Sudan  548,  559,  606 
Eleusine  600,  606 
Ela'is  guineensis  : see  Oil  palm 
Eland,  the  349,  923 
Elephantiasis  556 

Elephants  52,  149,  238,  320,  777-80, 
819,  921,  945,  965 
Elephants’  tails,  bristles  587 
Elgon  Mt.  (languages)  508,  851,  872 
Emin  Pasha  Relief  Expedition  171,  179, 
413  ; Emin  Pasha  416,  424,  435,  547 
En  Avant  (steamer)  98,  149,  410,  426 
Endeavour  (B.M.S.  steamer)  966 
England,  English  6,  83,  91,  179,  425,  463, 
498 

Epulu  R.  335,  336 

Equatorial  Congo,  Equatorville  105,  1 14, 
410,  437,  540,  814 
Eriksson,  Mr.  Karl  341 
Erythrophlceum  197,  663,  689 
Ethiopian  type,  the  523,  525,  537 
Ethnography  of  Africa  492-3 
Euphorbias  746 

European  intermixture  in  natives  of  West 
Congoland  537-8 


975 

Eutropius  grenfelli  324  ; — laticeps  168, 
934 

Evil  eye,  the  517 

Executions,  executioners  and  their 
weapons  662,  694-6 
“ Exeter  Hall  ”475 

Fairies,  belief  in  636,  639 
Fan  palms  : see  Borassus 
Fanwe,  Fan  (Pan we)  people  and  lan- 
guage 371,  512,  700,  766-7,  775,  829, 
865,  869,  889,  891 
Fashoda  436 
Fat  403,  651-2 

Feather  head-dresses  597-8,  661 
Felis  aurata  (Golden  Cat)  341,  597,  918 
Felspathic  rock  291 

Fernandian  people  and  language  (see  also 
Bube)  19,  624,  636,  724,  771,  786,  829, 
831,  837,  843,  855-8,  863-77,  879.  882-7, 
922,  953  et  seq. 

Fernando  Po,  Island  of  2,  10,  19  et  seq., 
100,  127,  498,  636,  946  et  seq. 

— mountains  of  45  (see  Clarence  Peak), 

947 

Ferns  907-9  ; tree  ferns  47,  908-9 
Ferruginous  rock  168 
Fetishes,  Fetish  shrines,  Fetish  worship 
161,  209,  633,  637  et  seq. 

Fevers  169,  226  et  seq.,  545,  555 

Fig  trees  589-90,  905 

Fingers  used  in  counting  844  et  seq. 

Fire  332,  627  et  seq.,  653 
Fires,  bush  145,  206,  628,  823 
Fish  of  the  Congo  basin  168,  178,  243, 
268,  324,  349,  362,  492,  615,  780-5, 
931  ; of  the  island  of  Fernando  Po,  950 
Fish  as  food  168,  177,  178,  613,  615, 
780-3,  816 

Fishing  141,  168,  277,  776  et  seq.,  781-5 
Fish-traps  154,  779-85 
Five  Days’  Debate  in  Belgian  Parlia- 
ment on  Congo  question,  1906  471 
Five,  the  numeral,  in  Central  African 
languages  842-3  et  seq. 

Flag  of  Kongo  and  of  Congo  Independent 
State  87 

Flamingoes  321,  927 
Fleas  732,  943 
Flemish,  the  77,  79 
Flies  230,  942-3 

Floods  137,  149,  234,  289,  338-9,  818 
Flora  of  the  Congo  164,  21 1,  241,  896 
et  seq.,  964  ; of  Fernando  Po  947 
Flutes  714-15,  722-3,  959 
Fogs,  mists  893 
Foliage  241 
Folk-lore  814  et  seq. 

Food  of  the  Congo  negroes  78,  143-4, 
600  et  seq.,  672-3  ; F.  Po  957-8 
Football  238 

Forest  156,  158,  211,  267,  271,  281,  320, 
338-9.  349.  697,  701,  892-3,  896 
Forest  belt  340  et  seq.,  343,  349,  912  et  seq., 
943 

Forest  Negro  (see  Negro)  352,  953 


976  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Forfeitt,  Lawson,  Rev.,  B.M.S.,  Pre- 
fatory remarks  106,  224,  230,  265,  290, 
438,  486,  5 54,  632,  778,  912,  939 
Mrs.  224 

— William,  Rev.,  Prefatory  remarks  224, 
335,  425,  466,  603,  810,  831,  833  et  seq., 
845,  890 

Mrs.  224,  246,  334,  494  et  seq.,  751 

Forges,  native  furnaces  and  forges  for 
metal-work  801-2,  805-6 
Fortification,  native  ideas  of  118,  132,  369, 
744-6 

Fox-Bourne,  Mr.  H.  R.  439,  440 
Fourneau,  M.  (French  explorer)  107 
Fowl,  the  domestic  137,  197,  614,  619-20, 
879 

Fraipont,  M.  Julien  492,  925 
France  and  the  French  59,  73,  74,  84,  91, 
96,  416,  475,  481 

Francis,  von  (German  explorer)  97,  135, 
146 

Francqui,  Capt.  423 
Franz- Josef  Falls  of  Kwango  204 
Fraser,  Mr.  Louis  946,  948 
Freemasonry  670 
Frees,  Albert  426 

Friction-drums  394,  666,  710,  719,  722 
Frobenius,  Dr.  (German  explorer)  124, 
49L  S25.  901 

Frogs  613,  615,  672,  930,  950 
Froment,  M.  188,  190 
Fuller,  Rev.  Joseph  J.,  B.M.S.  71,  889 
Funeral  ceremonies,  dances  647,  651, 
704-5 

Funtumia  910-11 

Furniture  in  native  huts  12 1,  744  et  seq., 
747,  757 

Gaboon  languages  856 
Gala  tribes,  languages  515,  524,  558,  623, 
625 

Gall  bladder,  the  (sign  of  a sorcerer)  391, 
393 

Gambling  707,  710-11 
Game,  big  150,  152,  215,  271,  320,  349, 
776  et  seq. 

Games  707  et  seq. 

Garenganze  319,  419 

Geens,  Rev.  Father  561,  576,  583,  637, 
680,  689-90,  825 
Geese  153,  321 
Gembele  people  368,  832 
Genets  919,  948 

Geographical  Society,  Royal  5,  44,  68, 
81,  128,  170,  265,  408 
Geology  of  Congo  basin  155,  168,  188, 
1 90-1,  210— 1 1,  278,  280-2, 289,  291,  312, 
337,  340,  964 

Georges,  Father  (first  martyr  of  Chris- 
tianity, Congoland)  73 
Gerard,  Lieut.  437 

Germany,  Germans  and  the  Cameroons 
42,  47,  59  et  seq.,  62  ; and  the  Congo 
83  et  seq.,  91,  107,  146-9,  172,  197,  381, 
416,  421,  424,  437 
German  East  Africa  434,  475,  493 


Ghouls  (corpse-eaters)  390,  398  et  seq., 
405  et  seq. 

Gillian,  Lieut.  427 
Giraffe,  the  320,  349,  926 
Giraud,  Capt.  314 
Girdles  587,  592 

Glasgow  63,  421  ; University  of  85,  890 
Glave,  E.  J.  106,  410,  438 
Glennie,  Rev.  R.  V.,  B.M.S.  224,  301,  724, 
875,  890 

Glossina  (tsetse  fly  genus)  229,  549  et  seq.  ; 

Glossina  palpalis  549-50,  964 
Gnathonemus  349,  934 
Gneiss  188,  802,  894 
Goat,  the  129,  362,  370,  616,  878-9 
God,  native  ideas  of  114,  201,  386,  632 
Godparents,  sponsors,  guardians  673 
et  seq.,  642,  694,  814  et  seq.,  954 
Goetzen,  Count  310 

Goffin,  M.  Louis  (chief  engineer,  Congo 
Railway)  272,  486  et  seq.,  490 
Gold  336,  349,  895 
Goldie,  Rev.  Hugh  12 

— Sir  George  T.,  Prefatory  remarks  56, 
455,  456 

Goldsmid,  Sir  Frederick  413 
Goliath  beetle,  the  405,  659,  944 
Gongo  Lutete  426  et  seq.,  429-31 
Gongs  664,  712,  809,  959 
Goodwill  (B.M.S.  steamer)  183,  186,  257, 
259,  297 

Gordon,  Gen.  413 

Gorilla,  the  341,  343—5,  614,  913 

Gorin,  Capt.  187-8,  200 

Gourds  600,  607,  630 

Graga  (Portuguese  explorer)  318 

Graham,  Rev.  R.  H.  C.,  B.M.S.  224 

Grandy,  Lieut.  65,  82 

Granite  894 

Grass  cloth  590 

— (as  a currency)  590,  790,  792,  795 
Grasses  of  the  Congo  192,  21 1 
Graves  653  et  seq.,  954 

Green  grasshoppers  939 
Greig,  Capt.  549,  552 

Grenfell,  Rev.  George  ; see  Prefatory 
remarks  ; birth,  early  life,  and  marriage 
p.  1,2;  outline  of  journeys  and  events 
in  his  life  in  Africa  p.  2,  3 ; death  3, 
374 ; appearance  4 ; Wauters’  estimate 
of  4,  5 ; honours  bestowed  on  5,  221  ; 
methods  of  work  in  surveying  5-7,  170  ; 
special  friends  9 ; his  place  among 
Congo  explorers  146  ; visits  Fernando 
Po  and  the  Bubes  25  ; exploration  of 
Cameroons  43  et  seq.,  51  et  seq.  ; starts 
for  the  Congo  63  et  seq.  ; second  mar- 
riage 68  ; resumes  work  on  Congo  mis- 
sion 95,  97  et  seq. ; constructs  the  Peace 
and  commences  exploring  work  on 
Upper  Congo  100  et  seq.  ; discovers 
Mubangi  River  107  ; second  journey  in 
B.M.S.  Peace  1 1 5 et  seq.  ; description  of 
Ngumba  houses  120 ; ascends  Rubi 
River  123,  337  ; visits  Arabs  and  Tipu- 
tipu  at  Stanley  Falls,  1884  125-6 ; 


INDEX 


977 


explores  Lomami  126-7,  3°$  > traces 
the  Mubangi  upstream  to  Zongo 
(Grenfell  Falls)  127-8,  132,  346;  starts 
to  explore  rivers  of  Central  Congoland 
1 3 5 et  seq.  ; describes  people  of  Lulongo 
River  138  et  seq  ; explores  Ruki-Juapa 
i^g  et  seq.  ; describes  pygmies  145,  161, 
33 1 — 3,  501  ; explores  Kasai,  Lulua, 
Sankuru  146  et  seq.,  157;  praise  of 
Kasai  scenery  156  ; visits  Tipu-tipu 
165  ; explores  Mfini  R.  and  Lake 
Leopold  II  167  et  seq.  ; visits  Kwango 
River  with  Bentley  170  ; completes 
chart  of  main  Congo  (1886)  170;  re- 
ceives Gold  Medal,  R.  Geo.  Soc.  170  ; 
visits  England,  1887  171  ; returns  to 
Congo,  1887  176  ; moves  head-quarters 
to  Bolobo  176,  178  ; his  synopsis  of  an 
African  story  178-9  ; notes  on  the 
Emin  Pasha  Relief  Expedition  179  ; 
and  on  the  Portuguese  at  San  Salvador 
and  in  West  Africa  179-84  ; launching 
of  the  Goodwill  183  ; G.  and  Capt. 
Lehrmann  185  ; G.  returns  to  England, 
1890  186  ; selected  as  King  Leopold’s 
commissioner  for  Lunda  Delimitation 
188-9  et  se(l->  553  ; G.  on  petrology  of 
cataract  region  188,  190  ; G.  and  the 
Kiamvo  of  the  Bayaka  197  et  seq.  ; 
G.’s  views  on  Africa  and  negro  rule 
202-3,  375  et  seq.,  382  et  seq.  ; on  Lunda 
scenery  2 1 1 ; description  of  riding  oxen 
216-18  ; returns  from  Lunda  via  Sao 
Paul  de  Loanda  220,  and  resumes  resi- 
dence at  Bolobo  221  et  seq.  ; his  health 
and  constitution  226  et  seq.  ; travel 
notes  238  et  seq.  ; G.  on  Congo  scenery 
241  ; on  incidents  of  native  life  at 
Bolobo  248,  250  et  seq.,  451  ; on  burial 
murders,  native  customs,  and  teaching 
of  Christian  dogmas  250  et  seq.,  382  et 
seq.,  655  et  seq.,  665  ; on  steamer 
difficulties  254,  25  7 et  seq.  ; his  explora- 
tions of  the  main  Congo  265  et  seq., 
372-3  ; last  visit  to  England  265  ; his 
portrait  in  1878  3 ; in  1893  265  ; in 
1901  frontispiece  ; in  1886  166  ; in 
1906  372  ; his  Aruwimi  and  Lindi 
explorations  302  et  seq.,  326  et  seq., 
372;  Grenfell  on  Congo  altitudes  280-1, 
283,  296-9,  308,  31 1 ; journey  to 
Nyangwe  3 1 1 et  seq. ; last  survey  work 
290  ; on  gorillas  344  ; on  Aruwimi 
peoples  and  languages  328,  354-8  ; 

on  Congo  State  administration  333-4, 

373  et  seq.  ; on  the  Bantu  border-line 
and  Mpombo  language  363,  381,  440, 
445,  et  seq.,  480-2  ; G.  on  native 
obstacles  to  trade  398  ; G.  on  witch- 
craft prosecutions  391  et  seq. ; his  death 

374  ; Lord  Mountmorres’s  opinion  of 

G.  377-8,  484-5  ; G.’s  speech  at 

Conference,  Jan.  1906  381  ; other 

references  to  G.  416,  423  ; G.  on  cica- 
trization 568  ; on  teeth-mutilation  571  ; 
hairdressing  582-3  ; affixing  of  heavy 

II. 2 I 


metal  necklets  586  ; native  clothing 
592-3.  594.  597  ; wild  coffee  602  ; on 
prohibition  of  sale  of  alcohol  to  the 
Upper  Congo  natives  609-10 ; on  edible 
caterpillars  143,  198,  613  ; dog-eating 
by  Bangala  615  ; G.  on  domestic  cattle 
of  S.W.  Congoland  623  ; G.  on  native 
religious  beliefs  632-5  et  seq.,  638  ; on 
graves  and  burial  ceremonies  653,  654-5; 
secret  confraternities  669  ; infant  mor- 
tality 672  et  seq.',  blood-brotherhood 
687  ; poison  ordeals  690  et  seq.  ; native 
land  tenure,  forest  rights  697  ; natives’ 
rules  of  inheritance  698  ; drum  signal- 
ling 721  ; huts  and  native  architecture 
73 1— 5 5 ; weapons  765  et  seq.  ; fishing, 
etc.  780-1  ; rafts  and  canoes  785  ; on 
native  currencies  795-7  ; Manbettu 
forges  (Nepoko  R.)  802  ; Folk-lore 
814  et  seq.  ; on  Congo  languages  831  et 
seq.,  879-90  ; on  Raphia  palms,  etc. 
899-901  ; coffee  910;  rubber  91 1 ; G. 
and  the  discovery  of  the  Forest  Pig  922  ; 
of  the  Okapi  926  ; G.  and  Congo  fish 
931  ; and  Fernando  Po  946  et  seq., 
958-60  ; G.  and  discovery  of  “ ochre- 
box,”  and  the  coloration  of  natives’ 
skins  560-3  ; G.  on  the  population  of 
the  main  Congo  541  et  seq.  ; on  sleep- 
ing sickness  552-3  ; on  the  Bakuba 
517;  on  the  Bayanzi  530;  on  the 
Bangala  533;  on  the  Belgians  and 
their  achievements  482  ; on  the  labour 
question  486  ; G.  and  collections  of 
natural  history  492  ; G.  on  Concession- 
naire  companies  445,  466,  481-2  ; G.  on 
atrocities  committed  in  Congoland  466, 
480  et  seq.  ; on  family  ties  among 
negroes  472  ; on  cannibalism  399, 
401  et  seq.  ; on  the  ivory  trade,  178, 
416,  445  ; on  the  Arab  war,  Arab 
raids  125,  375,  426-9,  432  ; on  the 
Batelela  mutineers  432-3 
Grenfell  Falls  (Zongo)  127,  132,  348, 

893 

Grenfell,  Miss  Patience  135,  146,  238-9 
— Mrs.  (Miss  Edgerley)  2 et  seq.,  22,  89,  98, 
135,  146,  183,  200,  247,  328 

(Miss  Hawkes)  2 et  seq. 

Grenfell’s  journeys  summarized  131 
Greshoff,  Mr.  (of  the  Dutch  house)  89 
Grey,  Earl  408 

Grogan  and  Sharpe  (explorers)  310 
Ground-nuts  78,  132,  206,  600,  606 
Grubs  eaten  by  natives  613 
Guava  78 

Guha  people  : see  Bagulia 
Guinea  (the  westernmost  coast-lands  of 
tropical  Africa  north  of  the  Equator) 
503 

Guinea-fowl  342-3,  927 
Guinness,  Dr.  Grattan  63,  74 
Guitar,  the  Congo  720,  723 
Guns  and  gunpowder  177,  181,  201,  204, 
209,  397.  4i9.  430.  764-5.  795.  955 
Gypohierax  927 


978  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Hemoglobinuria  555 
Hail-storms  234 
Hailes,  Miss  Lily  de  246 
Hair  (head)  145,  205,  350,  355,  367,  503, 
508,  527,  576,  580  et  seq.  ; hairdressing 
569,  580  et  seq.,  953 

— (body)  145,  350,  367,  503,  535,  5 77 
et  seq. 

Halkin,  Prof.  J.  393,  492,  676 
Hambursin,  Lieut.  427 
Hamitic  race:  type,  languages,  the  162, 
353.  5i5.  558,  827 
Hammock- travel  191,  196 
Handshaking,  methods  of  518 
Hanolet,  Capt.  418,  435,  453 
Hanssens,  Capt.  410 
Hares  920-1 

Harley  House  Mission  64 

Harpoons  774,  779 

Harps  367-8,  718-19,  723 

Harris,  Rev.  J.  H.  465 

Harrison,  Col.  468 

Hartebeests  349,  924 

Hartland,  Rev.  J.  S.,  B.M.S.  85,  91,  92 

Hartley,  Rev.  J.  W.,  B.M.S.  107,  225 

Hartog,  Dr.  Marcus  549 

Hats  598-9,  956 

Hausa  people,  language  44,  127,  166,  427, 
487 

Hawkes,  Miss,  Prefatory  remarks 
(Mrs.  Grenfell)  2,  3 

— Mr.  Joseph,  Prefatory  remarks ; 9 
Head,  deformation  of  (Upper  Congo)  580, 

672 

Head-dresses  (see  Caps)  152,  579,  597 
Head-rests  744,  745,  748 
Health  on  the  Congo  226  et  seq. 

Heat  in  the  Congo  climate  226  et  seq. 
Heavenly  bodies,  native  ideas  of  the 
815  et  seq. 

Hecq,  Lieut.  436,  492 
Helix  935 

Hell’s  Cauldron  271-2 
Hemp  78,  607-9 

Henry  Reed,  the  A.B.M.U.  s.s.  147;  Mr. 
Henry  Reed  147 

Herero  language  and  people  525,  830, 
852,  873-9 

Herons  153,  167,  242,  321,  552-3,  922 
Heusch,  de,  Lieut.  427 
Hewett,  Admiral  83 

— Consul  56  et  seq.,  60 

Heymans,  Rev.  Father  338,  551,  652,  825 
Hills  in  the  Congo  basin  109 
Him  a type  of  Negroid  162,  194,  364,  515, 
523-4,  558,  569,  576,  579,  590,  594, 
623-6,  762-4,  800,  859 
Hinde,  Capt.  S.  L.  228,  312,  426  et  seq., 
429,  521,  599,  701 
Hinde  Rapids  310,  312 
Hippopotami  103,  104  et  seq.,  106,  169, 
228,  776-80,  822,  922 
Hodister,  M.  416,  418,  425,  453,  759 
Hoes  122,  388,  625,  653,  772,  791-7 
Holo,  Ba-,  people  204-5,  2IO>  522.  524-5, 

584 


Holt  and  Co.,  John  24 
Homeyer,  Capt.  von  83 
Honey  129,  612 
Hooker,  Sir  Joseph  946-7 
Horns  in  sorcery,  medicine,  etc.  659 
Hornbills  343,  928 
Hottentots  498,  504,  563,  828 
Houses  of  the  natives  (see  Huts)  118,  120  ; 
of  the  Baptist  Mission  112,  760-1  ; 
houses  in  connection  with  native 
burials,  645  et  seq. 

Howell,  Rev.  J.,  B.M.S.  224 
— Mrs.  B.M.S.  246 
Human  flesh  399-400  et  seq. 

Hunt,  r.n.,  Capt.  80 
Hunter  aristocracies  160,  523,  764,  772 
Hunters,  negro  145,  369  et  seq.,  762,  776 
et  seq. 

Hunting  762  et  seq.,  774,  776-80 
Hutchinson,  Mr.  Thos.  T.  953,  955,  957 
Huts  and  native  architecture  : Aruwimi 
356,  753-6;  Bagenya  522,  743  ; Bakonjo 
743,  752  ; Bakuba,  739  ; Balese  755-6  ; 
Balolo  519,  748  ; Bambala  736;  Ban- 
gala  748  ; Bashilele  741-2  ; Basonge 
740-1  ; Basongo  739-40  ; Bateke  732  ; 
Bavumbo  520 ; Bwela  750 ; Bayaka 
735  ; Bayanzi  120,  747-9  ; conical  132, 
356,  368,  744-61  ; Fernando  Po  957; 
Kongo  731-3  ; Lunda,  Luba  739 ; Man- 
bettu  758-9  ; Manyema  743  ; Ngombe 
1 18,  748;  Nyamnyam  758;  on  piles 
138,  139,  752,  760  ; plank  houses  755  ; 
Pygmy  728  ; rectangular,  oblong  143, 
144,  731  etseq. ; round  743,  753,  757-8  ; 
Rubi  people’s  123,  731  ; square  144, 
340,  731  ; Waujabi  lio  743 
Hydrocyon  615,  934 
Hyenas  349,  407,  819,  919 
Hylochoerus  341-2,  369,  492,  922 
Hyphcsne  palms  897 
Hypnotism  659  et  seq. 

Hyrax  ( Procavia ) 341,  921,  949 

Ibaka,  “ King”  of  Bolobo  no,  119,  177, 
388-9,  598,  704 
Ibina  R.  335,  541 
Ibis,  Sacred  167,  242,  321 
Idiurus  920 
Idols  637 
Igneous  rocks  282 
Ikelemba  R.  117,  118,  145,  290 
Ila  (Chila)  language  (Northern  Zambezia) 
844,  871,  876,  888 
Ilebo,  Irebu  112,  135,  174 
Imbangala  people,  language  70,  71,  161, 
195.  673 
Imese  362 

Import  duties  417,  452 
India-rubber,  caoutchouc  : see  Rubber 
Indians  in  Africa  827-8 
Indigo  561 

Indiki  people,  language  766,  833,  872, 
884-5,  889 

Industrial  teaching  at  mission  schools  35, 
41,  237,  243,  247 


INDEX 


979 


Infant  mortality  672-3 
Influenza  429 
Ingots  of  copper  791-7 
Inheritance,  laws  of  697  et  seq. 

Initiation  ceremonies  665  et  seq.,  954 
Inkisi  R.  280 

Inscriptions,  old  Portuguese  71,  72 
Insectivores  917 

Insects  of  the  Congo  basin  229  et  seq., 
9 37  et  seq. 

Intoxicants : see  Hemp,  Drunkenness, 
Palm  wine,  Alcohol 
Ireland  and  the  Iberian  race  515 
Iron,  ironworkers  127,  129,  162,  168,  176, 
188,  281,  312,  320,  356,  367,  518,  560, 
585,  670-1,  676,  790  et  seq.,  798-806 
Isabel,  Santa  (see  Clarence)  21 
Isangi  (Lomami)  126 
Isangila  80,  95,  97,  98,  188,  271,  275-9, 
410 

Islands,  floating  117,  150  ; on  the  Congo, 
Kasai,  etc.  148 

Isubu  language  and  people  27,  35,  867- 
7 1,  889 

Italy,  Italians  on  the  Congo  72  et  seq., 
77,  84,  96,  167,  463,  468,  481 
Itunzima  Rapids  278 
Ituri  R.  335-6,  352,  503-4 
Ivory  67,90, 106, 145,  178-9,  415-16,445, 
45 3.  586,  791,  945 

Ja  R.  (Cameroons-Congo)  503,  891,  913 

Jabir  348,  435 

Jacottet,  M.  830,  888 

Jackals  819,  919 

Jacques,  Capt.  423 

“ Jaggas,”  the  70  et  seq.,  78,  195 

Jakoba  Falls  (Lualaba)  310 

Jamaica  18 

Janssen,  M.  Camille  413 
Jesuits,  the  70,  90 

Jigger,  the  (burrowing  flea,  Sarcopsyllus) 
73 2,  943 

Jimbu  shells  790,  792-3 
Johnston  Falls  314,  316 
Johnston,  Sir  H.  H.  : see  Author 
Joyce,  Mr.  T.  A.,  Prefatory  remarks,  561, 
576,  616,  642,  689,  825 
Juanola,  Joaquin,  R.  P.,  24,  882-3 
Juapa  R.  1 17,  140  et  seq.,  786 
Junker,  Dr.  134,  335,  342,  346,  533 
Juo  Lake  317 

Justice,  administration  of  688  et  seq. 

Kabambare  431-2 
Kabinda  70,  76 

Kabwari  (people  and  language)  324,  830, 
873 

Kaiser  (German  explorer)  83,  416 
Kakongo  (country,  people,  language)  74, 
91,  268-9,  284,  858,  889 
Kalambo,  King  of  the  Bena  Lulua  444, 
461 

Kallina  Point  and  Lieut.  Kallina  102,  285 
Kalulu  Falls  281-3 
Kamea,  Mt.  317 


Kamerun  (see  Cameroons)  27 
Kanyoka  tribe  163,  658 
Kaolin  (white  clay)  1 5 1 , 561 
Karema  409 
Karungu  R.  314 

Kasai  R.  and  district  77,  80,  109,  146 
et  seq.,  154-6,  491,  500,  540,  551 
Kasai  Company  444,  468,  476-80 
Kasale,  Lake  315 

Kasongo  (Lualaba)  185,  310,  31 1,  429 
Kasongo,  the  title  of  (see  Kiamvo)  190, 
192,  195,  200 

Katanga  316,  318,  419,  476-80,  493,  540, 
591,  726,  746,  790,  796-7,  800,  876,  895 
Kauri  shells  132,  138,  143,  79oyt  seq., 
796 

Kazembe,  the  194,  319,  420,  595] 

Kebwa  493 

Kele  language  and  people  (see  Lokele, 
Bakele)  354,  829 
Keltic  consonants  880 
Keltie,  Dr.  Scott,  Prefatory  remarks,  etc.  9 
Kenka  R.  284 

Kenred  Smith,  Rev.,  B.M.S.  224 
Kenya  Mt.  340,  342-3 
Kerckhoven,  Van  : see  Van  Kerckhoven 
Kethulle,  de  la,  Lieut.  435,  794 
Kiamvo,  the  (Mwene  Puto  Kasongo)  190, 
193  et  seq.,  197-203 
Kibali  (Wele)  R.  ; also  Kibbi  133,  347 
Kibira  language  835,  862,  885,  922 
Kibombo  Rapids  (Lualaba)  309 
Kilega,  Kirega  language  : see  Balega 
Kilo  Mts.  336,  895 
Kindu  307,  309,  493 
Kinena  424 

Kingunji  Rapids  1 5 1 , 170,  192 
Kinsembo  (Congo  coast)  76 
Kinshasa  96,  285 

Kioko,  Ba-  71,  160,  194,  215,  525,  966 
Kiombe  language  877-8,  889 
Kirk,  Sir  John  409,  550,  897-900 
Kirundi  language  853,  873,  889 
Kitchen-middens  152 
Kitchener,  Viscount  437 
Kites  ( Milvus ) 153,  823 
Kivu,  Lake  313 

Knives  138,  354-5,  630,  774-7;  throwing- 
knives  766-7,  775 

Kobe,  Ru-,  Kyopi,  Lu-  language  831 
Koelle,  Rev.  Sigismund  19,  163,  503,  872 
Kola  nut,  the  354,  557,  607,  638,  909 
Kongo,  name  of  70,  77,  160,  283 
Kongo,  Kings  of  64,  69,  75,  87,  179  et  seq. 
Kongo,  Kingdom  of  63,  69,  75,  87,  179 
et  seq.,  194,  551,  688,  700 
Kongo,  Ba-,  Eshi-  (people)  63,  69  et  seq., 
160,  284,  522,  563,  571,  575-6,  595,  61 1, 
6SS,  667,  678-83,  784-5,  803-4,  824,  879 
Kongo,  Kishi-  (language)  63,  635,  852, 
858,  877-8,  879,  890 
Kongo,  Tu-  160 

Konjo,  Ba-,  Lu-  (see  Bakonjo)  872-3 
Koto  R.  348,  436,  834 
Krej  language  834 
Kruboys  100,  576 


980  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Kuamba  language  829,  831,  843,  856, 
860-1,  867,  885 
Kuba,  Ba-,  Ki-  : see  Bakuba 
Kunda  people  832 

Kunde-irungo  Mts.  (Kundelungu)  317, 
420,  726 

Kungu  fly  234,  943 

Kusu,  Ya-,  Ba-,  Lo-  (people  near  Stanley 
Falls) 

Kwa  R.,  Kwamouth  (outlet  of  Kasai) 
104  et  seq.,  109,  146,  147  etseq.,  150,  287, 
5oo,  551 

Kwanga  (manioc)  102,  177,  796 
Kwango  R.  70,  76,  80  et  seq.,  109,  150 
et  seq.,  154,  193  et  seq.,  623-4 
Kwango  R.  (affluent  of  Mubangi)  77,  80 
et  seq.,  348.  829 

Kwangu,  or  Kwango  : name  of  Congo,  of 
Mubangi,  and  other  rivers  in  Bantu 
Africa  70,  133,  150,  283,  348,  804  et  seq. 
Kwilu  R.  (the  great  Kwilu)  15 1,  154, 
212-13,  219,  540,  551,  577,  804  et  seq. 
Kwilu  R.  (affluent  of  Cataract  Congo) 
280,  824 

Labeo  785 

Labour,  negro  486  et  seq.,  546 
Lacerda,  Dr.  76,  318 

Ladders  up  trees  or  steep  clay  banks  of 
rivers  115,  123,  132 
Lado  Enclave  436,  437 
Lady  Alice  Rapids  282 
Lake  dwellings  138 
Lake,  lakes,  ancient  Congo  308 
Lamps  813 
Landana  90 
Landslips  191,  287 

Land  question  in  Congo  State  446-7, 
454  et  seq.,  458,  697,  965 
Landolphia  910-11 
Landor,  Mr.  A.  Savage  468,  558 
Lange,  Lieut.  427 

Language  notes  (general)  364,  370,  826, 
966 

Languages,  secret,  artificial  669 

Langwasi,  Linguasi,  Alanba  366,  370,  832 

Latin  language  74 

Latrines  957 

Laundry  work  245 

Laurent,  M.  Emile  491,  910-11 

Lava  47,  50 

Leather  117,  597,  769,  808 
Leaves  as  clothing  588,  649  ; as  thatching 
728  et  seq.,  753-4 
Leeches  944 
Leeds  63 

Lefini  or  Lifini  R.  116 
Lefranc,  M.  S.  468,  471 
Leg  ornaments  590 

Lega  (Lendu)  people  351;  see  Lendu; 
also  Balega 

Lehrmann,  Herr  Drag  185,  196,  199  et  seq. 
Lemurs  of  the  Congo  basin  916  ; Fer- 
nando Po  948 

Le  Marinel,  Georges  154,  418,  435,  453 
— Paul  317,  419,  423,  436,  453,  726 


Lendu  (Drudu,  Lega)  people  and  lan- 
guage 351,  547,  551,  834,  842-3 
Lenz,  Dr.  165 

Leopard,  the  231,  777,  819,  917-18 
Leopard’s  claws,  imitation  in  iron  (Aru- 
wimi)  351 

Leopold  II,  King  : engages  Grenfell  as 
commissioner  8,  188-9  J commences 

international  movement  to  develop 
Congo  82  et  seq.,  91  ; commission  to 
Grenfell  189  ; bestows  decoration  on 
Grenfell  221  ; grants  concession  to  Ka- 
tanga company  319;  Grenfell’s  opinions 
on  376  et  seq.,  408  et  seq.  ; attempted 
occupation  of  Egyptian  Sudan  436-7  ; 
makes  his  will  in  favour  of  Belgium 
437-8  ; appoints  a Commission  of 
Inquiry  440  ; King  L.  and  the  Zappo- 
zaps  442  ; and  the  ownership  of  land 
446-7  ; his  account  with  the  Congo 
State  451-2  ; the  summing  up  of  his 
work  in  the  Congo  basin  453  et  seq.  ; 
his  position  and  connections  455  ; his 
treatment  of  Congoland  462  et  seq.  ; 
the  view  of  him  which  history  will  take 
473-4 

Leopold  II,  Lake  109,  no,  167  et  seq., 
410,  540 

Leopoldville  93,  96,  98,  102,  177,  284-5, 
410 

Leprosy  556,  672 

Lewis,  Thomas,  Rev.,  B.M.S.  16,  42,  52, 
65,  223,  265,  284,  688 

Mrs.  224,  265 

‘‘  Liberes,”  the  471-3,  556 
Liberia  18,  21,  23,  25,  63,  91,  100,  342-3, 
399,  409,  426-7,  457,  547.  962 
Liboko  (station,  river)  114,  115,  127-8, 
410 

Libyan  peoples  515,  558,  800 
Lice  732 

Licentiousness  amongst  the  natives  in, 
473.  7I3-I7.  725 

Liebrechts  (Lieut.-Col.),  Secretary  for 
Interior  in 
Lifoto  language  866 
Lightning  234,  628,  653 
Lihuku  (see  Bahuku)  843,  856,  861,  871, 
879,  884 

Likangana  language  866 
Likati  R.  123,  337 
Likuala  R.  288 
Lime,  the  78 

Limestone  88,  155,  156,  192,  278,  895 
Limnocnida  944 
Limonite  188 

Lindi  R.  302,  305,  353,  430,  833  ; name 
for  “ river  ”851 

Lion,  the  215,  320,  349,  700,  918 
Lip,  lips,  mutilation,  ornaments  of  126, 
35L  353-4.  370,  573.  577 '•  see  also 
Pelele 

Lippens,  Lieut.  425,  429 
Liquor  traffic  375 
Lisbon  74 

Lissochilus  orchids  51,  267,  904 


INDEX 


981 


Liverpool  56,  63,  82,  953 
Livingstone,  David  4,  42,  63,  80  s^., 

124,  154,  157,  3i3.  3i7»  318,  416,  595 
Livingstone  Inland  Mission  113,  226,  397 
Lizards  145,  276,  769,  778,  928,  950 
Loanda,  St.  Paul  de  81,  86,  220 
Lobai  R.  362 

Locustids  (“  green  grasshoppers  ”)  233, 
► 939 

Locusts  230,  233,  613  et  seq.,  939 
Logo  people  351-2 
Lohali  753,  8o8,  810 
Loika  R.  : see  Rubi 
Lokandu  465 
Lokele  (see  Kele)  354 
Lokele  people  and  language  302,  354, 
505.  513.  56i,  77L  780-1,  796-7,  819 
et  seq.  ; language  829,  864,  879,  884, 
890-1 

Lolo,  Ba-  (people  and  language)  127,  139, 
158,  301,  508,  517,  523,  568  et  seq.,  652, 
657  et  seq.  ; language  835,  855,  867,  887, 
890 

Lomami  R.  124,  125-6,  137,  158,  308, 
375.  539  et  seq.,  752,  786 
London  Missionary  Society  12,  80,  326, 
424 

Lone  Island  1 10 

Lopes,  Mr.  Jose  949 

Lopori  R.  136,  518 

Lorand,  M.  468 

Losakani  people  530,  585 

Lothaire,  Major  427,  430-1,  436,  478-80 

Louis  Philippe,  King  455 

Low,  Rev.  W.  P.  827 

Lowa  R.  307-8 

Lower  Congo  region  539,  554,  892  et 
seq. 

Lua  R.  360,  362 

Lualaba  R.  (Upper  Congo)  63,  81,  82,  84, 
124,  126,  158,  307  et  seq.,  315-17,  321, 
493.  540,  746 

Luango  (Congo  coast)  70,  78,  84,  571,  804, 
811 

Luanje  R.  21 1,  215 

Luapula  R.  (Luvua)  313  etseq.,  315,  421-3, 
493 

Luba,  Ba  (also  Lua,  Rua)  people  and 
language  148,  160,  163,  193,  324,  405 
et  seq.,  442,  444,  523,  563,  593-4,  624, 
636  et  seq.,  642  et  seq.,  655  et  seq.,  659 
et  seq.,  670-1,  683,  700  et  seq.,  805  et  seq., 
81 1,  814  et  seq.  ; language  830,  859-60, 
878  et  seq.,  888 
Lubefu  R.  493 

Lubira  language  : see  Babira 
Lubilash  R.  (Sankuru)  154,  157 
Lubudi  R.  156,  316-17 
Luddington,  Rev.  W.  B.  890 
Luebo  R.  149,  156 
Lufira  R.  316-17 

Lukenge  R.  163,  169,  243,  346,  917 
Lukengu  516 

Lukolela  105  et  seq.,  111,  112,  229,  289, 
388,  410,  655,  678 
Lukuga  R.  309,  312-13 


Lulanga  1 14 
Lulindi  R.  307 
Lulongo  Company,  the  485 
Lulongo  R.  4,  7,  1 12,  1 14,  136  et  seq., 
400,  652 

Lulu  R.  335,  356 
Lulua,  Bena-  tribe  163,  444 
Lulua  R.  146,  154,  157-8,  346,  441 
Luluabourg  431,  441 
Lumbu  (enclosure)  66,  200 
Lunda  country,  plateau  156,  193  et  seq., 
210-11,  215,  320;  Expedition,  Gren- 
fell’s 5,  187  et  seq. 

— language  193,  200,  203,  860  ; people 
160,  163,  193-4,  203,  215,  316,  320,  325, 
405,  420,  442,  444,  553,  562,  572,  574, 
594-5.  598-9.  624,  683,  700,  703,  876, 
888,  966 

Lungasi  R.  and  people  (Cameroons)  30,  43, 
55 

Lunkundu  language  835  (see  also  Lolo) 
867,  887 

Lupton  Bey  435 
Lusambo  154,  186,  426 
Lushiko  R.  2 1 5 
Lutete  279 
Luyi  language  888 

Lycanthropy  (men  assuming  the  form  of 
beasts,  crocodiles,  etc.)  494-6,  632, 
641-2 

Lycopodiums  95  7 
Lydekker,  Mr.  R.  921,  948 
Lyre,  the  Congo  721 

Mabea  language  869,  891 
Mabenja  people  356,  777,  778,  807-8 
Mabode  people  352-3  403,  570 
Mackenzie,  Sir  George  455 
Mackinnon,  Sir  Wm.  408,  437,  455 
McKittrick,  J.  and  F.  T.  887 
Macmillan,  Donald  225 
Madan,  Mr.  A.  C.  890 
Madi  people  and  language  253,  364,  827, 
834,  842 

Magboro  people  and  language  354 
Magic,  magicians  658  et  seq. 

Mahdists  (Dervishes)  437 
Mai  (word  meaning  water  or  river)  Mai- 
ma-mbosi  (Alima)  116 
Maimunene  (chief)  517 
Maize  78,  361,  600-2,  61 1 
Makarka  (Nyamnyam)  364,  834 
Makoko,  the  76-7,  700,  803 
Makua  R.  (Wele)  133 
Makuta  district  65  et  seq.,  91  et  seq.,  95, 
191,  396 
Malachite  318 
Malamine,  Sergt.  96 
Malarial  fever  545,  555 
Malet,  Sir  Edward  459 
Malfeyt,  State-Insp.,  Major  333,  373 
Malunja  (Ngombe)  people  572 
Mammals  of  the  Congo  341  et  seq. 

— of  Central  Congoland  346 

— of  Forest  Belt  341  et  seq. 

— of  Fernando  Po  948  et  seq. 


982  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Man  : as  an  article  of  food  399  ; early 
types  of,  in  Africa  497  ; as  a forest 
dweller  727-8 
Manati,  the  922,  929 
Manbettu  people  and  language  352-3, 
364,  399,  403,  498,  533  et  seq.,  562  et  seq., 
579  et  seq.,  591,  612-14,  649,  702,  802, 
818  et  seq.,  834-51,  888,  966 
Manchester  56,  63,  82 
Mandingo  negroes  547-8,  722 
Mandrill,  the  914,  949 
Manenguba  Mts.  (Cameroons)  43,  44 
Manga,  Ba-,  Wa-  : see  Bamanga 
Mangabeys,  the  914 

Manioc  (tapioca)  78,  102,  132,  158,  177, 
199,  405,  551,  557,  600,  605,  608, 
611 

Manis  (Ant-eater)  346,  926,  949 
Manjia  people  371,  832,  834 
Mann,  Gustav  38,  47,  946-7  et  seq. 
Manning,  Cardinal  408 
Manson,  Sir  Patrick  552 
Mansonia  942 
Mantises  233,  938 
Mantumba,  Lake  : see  Ntomba 
Manure,  use  of  625 
Manyan  language  884 
Manyanga  72,  76,  97,  278  et  seq.,  410,  795, 
805 

Manyema  country,  people  124,  310,  321, 
346,  404,  426,  428  et  seq.,  515,  521,  545, 
57i 

— language  829,  855,  857,  866 
Maps,  old  Portuguese,  Flemish,  etc.  77 
Marchand,  Col.  132,  436 
Marinel,  Le  : see  Le  Marinel 
Maringa  R.  136,  139 

Marriage  customs  (Pygmies)  145,  674; 
Kongo  180,  678  et  seq.  ; other  tribes 
674-84 

Married  women,  law  dealing  with  473 
Martin,  Rev.  M.  442,  517 
“ Martyrdom  of  Man,”  the  174 
Marungu  country  and  people  405,  636, 
687,  830 

Masks  407,  580,  637,  664 
Mason  wasps  230,  939 
Masonic  societies  659,  888 
Massage  557 
Mastacembelus  784,  934 
Mata  Bwiki  388,  399,  400 
Matadi  63,  71,  72,  8o,  271-5,  283,  418,  447, 
493 

Matombi  (story  of)  494-6 
Matschie,  Prof.  P.  342,  492,  913,  922 
Mats,  mat-making  515,  799,  807 
Mawambi  326-7,  333 
Maxwell,  r.n.,  Capt.  80,  91 
Mayflies  233 
Mayombe  Forest  271 
Mayombe  people,  language  284 
Mbirizi  R.  76,  92 
Mbomu  R.  132,  346-7,  364-5,  436 
Mbuba  people  and  language  (Momvu) 
323.  352-3,  834,  842-3 
Mbundu,  Ki-  859 


Mbundu,  U-,  Ovi-  858-9,  877,  879,  888 
Mburu  people  832 

Mbutu  people,  pygmies  : see  Bambutu, 
Mombutu 
Mead  612 
Meal-times  631 
Measles  149,  556 

Mechow,  Major  von  15 1,  192,  204 
Medicines,  native  557 
Medicine-man  (see  Doctor,  Sorcerer)  563, 
571,  575,  658  et  seq.,  661,  663,  689 
Medusce  944-5 

Meinhof,  Prof.  Carl  826-8,  857-8 
Menena  R.  356 

Mense,  Dr.  (German  explorer)  4,  97,  1 5 1 
Merrick,  Rev.  Joseph,  B.M.S.  18,  27  et 
seq.,  38,  889 

Metallophones  201,  717,  722 
Metal-working,  use  of  metals  117,  762-4, 
800-6 

Meteorology  of  the  Congo  192,  491,  892 
et  seq. 

Methodists,  Primitive  (Mission)  12,  24, 
882,  890 

Meura,  Lieut.  341 
Mfini  R.  109,  167  et  seq. 

Mfumbiro  volcanoes  310,  895 
Mfutila  18 1 

Miani  (Italian  explorer)  127 
Mica  188 
Mice  230,  920 
Michaux,  Lieut.  427 

Michell,  Vice-Consul  G.  B.,  Prefatory 
remarks,  461,  468,  826,  845,  848,  864, 
875,  891 
Midges  230,  942 

Military  training  for  the  negro,  value  of 
494-6 

Millet  361,  600,  606 

Milk,  milking  of  cattle  623 

Millman,  Rev.  W.,  B.M.S.  639 

Milz,  Lieut.  436 

Minerals  895-6 

Misa  people  351 

Missions,  missionaries,  mission  work  10 
et  seq.,  5 6,  174,  222  et  seq.,  242  et  seq., 
465-8  ; mortality  in  mission  work,  223  ; 
see  Baptist,  Catholic,  Universities, 
Presbyterian,  Church  of  England 
Mists,  “ Cachimbo,”  fogs  192 
Mitumba  Mts.  317,  895,  932 
Mitwanzi  Gorge  313 
Mizon,  Lieut.  (French  explorer)  107 
Mohara,  Mwinyi  185,  425 
Mohun,  Consul,  U.S.A.  312,  427 
“ Moiyo  ” 163 

Moka  (Fernando  Po)  947,  961 
Mokwangai  132,  348,  366,  787 
Moloney,  Dr.  419 
Mollusca  of  Congoland  935-6 
Mombutu,  Wambutu  negroes  353,  536, 
835-6 

Momvu,  Momfu  people,  language  335, 
352,  674-5,  834 

Mondole  Id.  (Cameroons)  37,  39,  46 
Mongala  12 1,  290,  337-8,  359,  418 


INDEX 


Mongo  people,  language  139,  158,  518, 
561,  568  et  seq.,  649,  768,  829 
Mongwandi  people  and  language  359,  512, 
573,  581,  663,  676-7,  687,  759-60,  779, 
832  et  seq.,  966 

Monkeys  of  the  Congo  basin  267,  913-16  ; 

Fernando  Po  948 
Monkey  skins  138 
Monogamy  179,  677 
Monrovia  426 

Monsembe  Station  121,  247 
Monteiro  and  Gamitto  313 
Moon,  native  ideas  about  the  8 1 5 et  seq. 
Moore,  J.  E.,  310,  935-6,  944 
Moreau,  P&re  906 

Morel,  Mr.  E.  D.,  Prefatory  remarks,  440, 
465,  468 

Mormyridce  349,  934 
Morrison,  Rev.  W.  M.  442,  517,  887 
Mortality  amongst  Baptist  missionaries 
222  et  seq. 

Mosokuba  people  832 
Mosquitoes  23,  36,  126,  223,  229,  941-2 
Mother-right  673 
Motima  R.  337,  574,  913 
Mountains,  hills  of  Congo  basin  156,  158, 
271  et  seq.,  310-11,  316-17,  336-7 
Mountmorres,  Lord,  Prefatory  remarks, 
145>  175>  302,  321-2,  331,  334,  353-4, 
362,  366,  377,  468  ; on  Grenfell  and  the 
Concessionnaire  companies  484-5  ; on 
Pygmies  504  et  seq.  ; on  the  Mongo 
peoples  517-18  ; Balolo  519  ; on  popu- 
lation of  Congo  542  et  seq.  ; scar-tatu- 
ing  570  ; pigeons  620  ; on  Bantu 
graves  654;  drum  - signalling  721; 
house-building  751-3 
Mourning,  customs  regarding  645-6,  649 
et  seq.,  654-5 
Moye  people  no,  301 
Mpala  317,  688 
Mpemba  (Kongo)  69 
Mpo  people  518,  714-15 
Mpombo  people,  language  134,  363,  572, 
832  et  seq.,  838-40,  890 
Mpongwe  language  855-7,  870,  889 
Mpozo  R.  280,  487 
Msiri,  Msidi  318-19,  419  et  seq. 

Mswata  102,  108 

Mubangi  River  (see  also  Wele)  discovery 
by  Grenfell  107,  109,  in,  116,  127-8 
et  seq.,  132,  340  et  seq.,  346  et  seq.,  399- 
400,  418,  436,  787  et  seq.,  832  et  seq.,  893, 
896,  929 

Mud,  used  in  building  123,  129  ; old  word 
for,  in  Bantu  tongues  837,  886 
Muellers,  the  (German  explorers)  146 
Muhammadans,  Muhammadanism  539, 
596 

Mundu  people  and  language  351,  363,  770, 
832  et  seq.,  838  et  seq.,  966 
Mungo  River  (Cameroons)  30,  37,  41  etseq., 
4 3>  5i 

Mungulu,  Chief,  of  Bolobo  385-9 
Munza,  King  534 
Muri,  title  of  670-1 


983 

Museum,  British  74,  492,  550,  597,  922 

— Congo  : see  Tervueren 

Music  (native)  67,  201,  209,  331,  492,  536, 
722  et  seq.,  959  ; musical  instruments 
201,  492,  710-23,  959 
Musical  bow,  the  716,  723,  959 
Musscenda  flowers  1 5 1 , 241,  267,  906 
Musuko  2,  64,  69,  89  et  seq.,  188 
Muta-nzige  (Lake  Dweru)  164-5 
Mutilations  of  body,  face,  etc.  353-4, 
571 

Mutineers  of  Congo  army  : see  Batelela 
Mutumba,  Bena-  316 
Mwata  Yanvo,  or  Yanvua,  the  84,  193-4, 
318,  319,  396,  420,  703 
Mwene,  Mani,  etc.  (title)  70 
Mweru,  Lake  81,  194,  314-15,  317,  319, 
438,  493.  5oo,  598,  727,  744,  794,  913, 
928,  932,  965 

Nabarro,  Dr.  A.  549,  552 
Nana  R.  128 

Nassau,  Rev.  Hamilton  889 
Native  rights  456-8 

— - teachers,  artisans,  etc.  15,  186,  261, 
262-4 

Navigation,  navigability  of  rivers,  diffi- 
culties or  facilities  of  104  et  seq.,  129, 
133,  1 5 1-2,  257-64,  284  etseq.,  288,  290, 
292  et  seq.,  295-6,  306-7,  314-15.  335. 
337,  347-8,  493-  495 
Ndaka  language  (Aruwimi)  328,  354 
Ndembo  society  667-8 
Ndirfi  347,  431,  437 

Ndonga  people  and  language  360,  536, 
571,  582-3,  750,  777,  826,  833-51 
Ndobo  country  338-9 
Ndombe,  Chief  517 
Ndri  peoples  (Pa-tri,  Bedri)  371,  832 
Necklaces  122,  129,  585  et  seq.,  591,  957 
Neck-rings  (see  Collars)  15 1,  957 
Needles  563,  594,  803 
Negro,  the,  in  general  174,  382  et  seq., 
461,  486,  500,  5 1 1,  579  ; Forest,  short- 
legged type  161,  366,  498,  505,  511-12, 
658,  763,  827,  953  ; Nilotic,  long- 
legged  type  511-12,  514,  658 

— condition  of  the,  before  White  inter- 
vention 207-8 

— West  Coast  500 
Negrito  races  51 1 

Neolithic  culture  of  the  Congo  negroes 
724-5 

Nepoko  R.  331,  829 
Nets,  fishing  781-4 
Newbegin,  Dr.,  B.M.S.  23 
Newton,  Mr.  Frank  946,  948-50 
Ngakabi,  Queen  109  ' 

Ngaliema  96,  177,  391,  686 

“ Nganga,”  the  563,  658  et  seq.,  667,  805 

Ngapu  people  366,  832 

Ngaumdere  people  833 

Ngiri  R.  289,  340,  380 

Ngoie,  Chief  245,  389-90 

Ngoko  R.  107 

Ngoma,  Mt.  277 


984  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Ngombe  people,  language  118,  138,  158, 
302,  359,  402-3,  433,  509,  528,  531, 
560-2,  564  et  seq.,  571,  583,  592,  692-3, 
7 51,  773,  779,  786;  language  829,  866, 
879 

Ngombe  (place,  W.  Congo)  106,  m,  289 
Ngombe  (Bantu  word  for  ox)  624,  878-9 
Nicholls,  Lieut.-Col.  (Governor,  Fernando 
Po)  20,  28 

Niger  R.,  Nigeria  80,  503,  799 
Nightingale,  Consul  468 
Nile  Quest,  The  (Author’s  book)  900 
Nile,  R.  (Nile  system,  watershed)  317,  436 
Nilis,  Major  435 

Nilotic  Negro,  the,  race  and  languages 
351,  5 1 1,  514.  558,  650,  819,  827,  834 
Nimptsch,  Baron  von  146,  149,  215,  41 1, 
4i3 

Nine,  roots  for,  in  Bantu  871,  876 
Njima,  Njiem  people  and  language  869, 
891 

Nkasa  (poison)  689-91 
Nkenge  R.  116 
Nkimba  Society  667-9 
“ Nkula,”  “ Ngola,”  “ Tukula  ” (red 
colouring  material)  551,  560,  652,  679, 
748 

Nlemvo  238 
Noki  80,  270-1,  283 

Nomad  habits  of  Bantu  negroes  157,  212 
Northern  territories  of  Congo  basin  540-1 
Norway,  Norwegians  381 
Nose  mutilations  143,  370,  572 
Nouvelle  Anvers  338,  449,  542,  551 
Nsakara  (Mbomu)  people  364,  365-6,  399, 
402,  512,  537,  580-1,  652,  657,  834,  9 66 
Nshasa  (Stanley  Pool)  96,  177,  381 
Ntamo,  or  Kintamo  177 
Ntamo  (Stanley  Pool)  96,  177,  283  (Ntamo 
Falls) 

Ntomba,  Lake  109,  128,  145,  168,  173-5, 
176,  300,  519 

Nudity  among  negroes  33,  55,  129,  144, 
367.  507.  558-9.  565>  580,  587  et  seq., 
655.  956 

Nuts  (food  or  medicine)  557 
Nyamnyam  people  and  language  348-9, 
353.  359.  364-5.  399.  402-3,  435.  536, 
541,  570,  580,  625,  650-1,  676;  lan- 
guage 806,  834,  841-2  et  seq.,  865,  884, 
888 

Nyamwezi,  U-,  Ua-  419 
Nyangwe  82,  124,  310  et  seq.,  429 
Nyari-Kwilu  R.  271 

Nyasa,  Lake,  Nyasaland  81,  234,  424, 
558,  933-4,  942 

Nyasa-Tanganyika  plateau  314,  325, 

85 1 et  seq . 

Nzilo  R.  (Lualaba)  313,  315 

Oaths  694-5 
Obscenity  713,  717 
Ogowe  river,  peoples  869 
Oils  361,  557 

Oil  palm  ( Ela'is ) 129,  157-8,  215,  305,  340, 
361,  601,  610-11,  747,  900-1 


Okapi  ( Occipia ),  the  341,  492,  808,  925-6 
“ Okroes  ” ( Hibiscus  buds)  606 
Olivella  shells  792,  957 
Onions  600 
Oporto  946 
Oranges  78,  no,  15 1 
Orchids  51,  136,  156,  267,  904 
Ordeals  (poison  and  other  kinds)  32,  197, 
391  et  seq.,  661  et  seq.,  689  et  seq.,  692-3 
“ Orphans,  law  dealing  with  ” 471-2 
Osorio,  Dr.  889,  946 
Oswell,  W.  Cotton  80 
Otters  145,  948 
Ovis  ; Ovis  jubatus  618 
Owen,  Capt.  W.  F.  20,  80 
Owls  268,  614,  950 

Oxen  208,  216-18,  623-4,  955  ; Bantu 
words  for  624,  956 
Oxytenanthera  (Bamboo)  902-4 
Oysters  {Mtheria)  132,  152,  613,  936 
Ozo  R.  308 

Paddles  138,  354-5,  788 
Palabala  63,  226,  397,  653,  727 
Palm  wine  601,  610-11,  899 
Palm  oil,  palm  kernels  601 
Palms  126,  136,  157-8,  215,  601,  896 
et  seq.,  964 : see  also  Oil  palm,  Calamus, 
Borassus,  Date  (wild),  Hyphaene,  Cocoa- 
nut,  etc. 

Pandanus  136,  140,  153,  305,  901,  964 
Panga  (Aruwimi)  354,  753 
Panicum  600,  606 
Panpipes  735 
Papaw,  the  78,  158 
Papyrus  15 1,  153,  901,  964 
Parinarium  trees  905 
Paris  74 
Parke,  Dr.  426 
Parliaments,  native  697 
Parr,  Rev.  Theophilus,  Prefatory  re- 
marks 882 

Parrots,  grey  parrot  41,  136,  145,  597,  641, 
670,  928 
Patriote,  Le  471 

“ Peace,”  the  B.M.  steamer  2,  16,  97, 
98  et  seq.,  100  ; first  journey  108  et  seq.  ; 
second  journey  of  1 1 5 et  seq.  ; third 
journey  of  135  et  seq.  ; fourth  journey 
of  146  ; fifth  journey  167  ; sixth 
journey  169 ; impressed  by  Stanley 
1 71  et  seq.  ; navigates  Lake  Ntomba 
173  ; seized  by  Congo  State  186  ; in- 
struction given  on  board  328  ; dangers 
to  133,  146,  168,  257  et  seq.  ; and  the 
Arab  War  426 
Peas  600,  607 
Pechuel-Loesche,  Dr.  84 
Pedro  V,  Dom  87,  180 
Pelele  or  mpelele  (lip-ring)  126,  323,  573-4 
Pelicans  153,  167,  242,  275,  927 
Pelmatochromis  935-6 
Peloids  (scar-tatuing)  564  et  seq. 
Pennisetum  600 
Pepper,  red  158 
Periophthalmus  fish  268 


INDEX 


Peto,  Sir  Morton  34 

Petrology  of  Congo  basin  188,  192,  210- n, 
278,  280-2,  894-6 
Phallic  rites,  worship  192,  638 
Phantoms  643  et  seq. 

Phaseolus  beans  600,  607 
Phasidus  342,  927 
Phillips,  Rev.  H.  Ross,  B.M.S.  224 
Pholidota  (Manises)  926 
Phonology  of  the  Bantu  880-1 
Physical  characteristics  of  negro  tribes 
353-4,  359,  362-6,  366-8,  370-1,  503, 
507-8,  512,  517,  532,  534  et  seq. 
Pickersgill,  Consul  468 
Picture-writing  807,  81 1 
Pig,  domestic  192,  197,  616,  679-80 

— forest  341,  492,  779,  922 

— red  river,  wild  “ bush  ” 192,  243,  321, 
616,  779 

Pigeons  620 

Pigments  in  native  use  560-1 
Pikes,  wooden  354 
Pile-dwellings  518,  752,  760-1 
Pineapple,  the  78,  153,  15 6 et  seq.,  158, 
200,  600  et  seq. 

Pinnock,  Rev.  John  (sen.),  B.M.S.  225 

(jun.),  Rev.,  B.M.S.  11,  224,  225, 

889 

Pipes  12 1,  609 

Pitfalls  762  et  seq.,  775,  778-9,  955 
Plaited -string  work  630,  801,  807-8 
Plantains  612 

Plantain-eaters  (see  Turacos)  928,  950, 

965 

Plateaus  188-92,  210-11,  280,  310-11 
Plates  and  dishes  747 
Plough,  the  625 
Plumatella  945 

Plymouth,  the  (sailing  boat)  97 
Plymouth  Brethren,  Mission  of  the  319, 
421,  876 

Pneumonia  237,  547,  555 
Pocock,  Mr.  R.  I.  341,  914 
Pogge,  Dr.  83,  146,  517,  601 
Pogge  Falls  155 
Pogge,  Mt.  153 
Poiana  948-9 

Poisons  197,  776,  910  ; arrow,  spear  762 
et  seq.,  777,  955 
Polygamy  363,  365,  671,  676 
Polypterus  931-3 
Polyzoa  944-5 
Pombeiros,  the  318 
Ponta  da  Lenha  269 
Ponthier,  Capt.  306,  426-7,  436 
Ponthierville  306,  493 
Popes,  the,  and  Congo  evangelization 
72  et  seq. 

Popoie  (Aruwimi)  354 
Popokabaka  193,  198  et  seq. 

Population  of  Congo  State  539-46 
Porcupines  920,  949,  957 
Porters,  and  their  loads  98 
Portugal,  Portuguese  in  West  Africa 
5,  8,  13,  27,  182  et  seq.,  188-90,  396,  442, 
792  ; in  Congoland  70  et  seq.,  75  et  seq., 


985 

86,  91,  180  et  seq.,  396,  442  ; knowledge 
of  the  Congo  interior  76  et  seq. ; benefits 
conferred  on  Africa  by  introduction  of 
plants  and  animals  78,  600,  605,  623 
Portuguese  language,  the  83 
Portulaca  601 
Potagos,  Dr.  346 
Potamochoerus  pigs  192,  616 
Potato,  the  sweet  78,  607 
“ Poto  ” negroes  of  Fernando  Po  961-2 
Poto,  Ba-  (people  of  Upper  Congo)  122, 
402,  509,  512,  528,  545,  564^  seq.,  583, 
651,  687 

Poto  language  (Lifoto)  866 
Pottery,  pots  133,  163,  167,  371,  492, 
519,  586,  613,  617,  626-8,  653  et  seq., 
67$,  683,  747,  790-1,  798,  809-18, 
959 

Powell-Cotton,  Major  468 

Prain,  Col.  D.,  Prefatory  remarks,  902 

Prawns  27,  936 

Prefixes,  the  Bantu  854  et  seq.,  886 ; the 
13th  prefix  855,  886;  7th  856,  886; 
10th  856-9;  12th  857  ; 15th  857,  886; 
16th  857-9,  886  ; 17th  853,  857—8  ; 
2nd  prefix  859  ; 8th  856,  859  ; particles 
854-5,  860,  886 

Prefixes  and  suffixes  in  African  languages 
834 

Presbyterian  Missions  12  ; United  — 12, 
56  ; American  — 439,442,  461,  466,  517 
Prince,  Dr.  G.  K.,  B.M.S.  18  et  seq. 
Printing  at  the  Baptist  Mission  34,  41, 
248 

Problems,  Congo  963  et  seq. 

Property,  native  ideas  as  to  697 
Protopterus  243,  244,  933-4 
Protozoa  944-5 
Proyart,  Abbe  91 
Puberty  customs  666-7 
— dances  714 

Pudenda,  concealment  of  559 
Pumpkins  600  et  seq.,  607 
Punishments,  native  695-6 
Purses,  wicker-work  793 
Pygmies,  Pygmy  races  in  Congoland  145, 
161,  175,  301-2,  331  et  seq.,  350  et  seq., 
497  et  seq.,  504,  789 ; geographical 
distribution  of  499,  504,  507,  524 ; 
language  of  508,  834-7  ; sense  of  smell 
508  ; nudity  558  ; physical  character- 
istics 504-8  571-3,  575  et  seq.  ; food 
601  et  seq.  ; knowledge  or  ignorance  of 
producing  fire  627  et  seq.  ; religious 
belief  632  ; burial  customs  653  ; names 
given  to  145,  301,  501,  504,  637  ; treat- 
ment of  children  673  ; marriage  674  ; 
hut-building  728  ; hunting  and  weapons 
762  et  seq.,  768,  779  ; dances  and  songs 
331-2,  713,  718 
Pythons  269,  950 

Quakers,  the  18,  440 
Quartz  132,  188,  312 
Quelimane  146 

Quinary  system  in  numerals  842-3  et  seq. 


g86  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Rabinek,  Mr.  (Austrian  trader)  438 
Rafts,  catamarans  127,  785-6 
Railway,  Railways,  Congo  188,  272  et 
seq.  ; Upper  Congo  306,  309,  328,  418, 
474,  476,  486  et  seq.,  493 
Rain,  Rains,  Rainfall  191,  283-4,  300-1, 
321,  335-6,  337,  892-4 
Rainbow,  native  myths  as  to  the  816 
Randia  trees,  dye  561,  813,  906 
Raphia  palms  116,  156,  215,  520,  590,  728, 
742,  809,  898-900,  958,  964 
Ratel,  the  919 
Rats  791,  920,  948-9 
Rat-traps  121,  790-2 
Rattles  395,  701,  71 1 
Razors  580 

Reade,  Win  wood  (his  opinion  of  Saker) 
43  ; 547 

Reed-ornamentation  on  houses  519,  749 
Reichard,  P.  (German  explorer)  83,  416, 
421 

Reid,  Rev.  M.  H.  230,  269-70 
Reid,  Sir  Hugh  Gilzean  482 
Rejaf  437 

Religious  Beliefs  492,  632  et  seq. 
Reptiles  of  Congoland  492,  928  et 
seq. 

Resin  630 

— for  smearing  basket-work,  pottery  807, 

813 

Rhinoceros,  the  320,  349 
Rhodes,  Cecil,  the  late  Rt.  Hon.  453,  455, 
456 

Rhodesia  493 

Riaba  (Fernando  Po)  947,  961 
Ribariba  309 

Rice  (wild  and  cultivated)  122,  310,  600-2, 
605 

Richards,  Rev.  Michael,  B.M.S.  166 
Richardson,  Rev.  C.  H.  (B.M.S.,  Came- 
roons)  52,  889 
Rickards,  Lake  41 
Riding-oxen  208,  216-18 
Rings  585 

River  Congo,  The  (Author’s  book)  897 
River,  West-Central  African  root-words 
for  143,  283,  286,  347 
Robertson,  Rev.  W.  Govan  890 
Rodents  of  the  Congo  919-21  ; of  F.  Po 
948-9 

Roget,  Capt.  43  5 » 453 
Rogozinski,  M.  Stefan  52 
Rom,  Lieut,  427 

Roman  Catholic  Church  missions  : see 
Catholic  and  Church 
Rome  (dealings  with  Congo)  72  et  seq. 
Rothschild,  Baron  Maurice  de,  Prefatory 
remarks  ; 342-3 

— Hon.  Walter  344,  912 
Rousselet,  Mr.  C.  F.  944 
“ Royal  ” (steamer)  410 
Ruanda  873 

Rubber,  India,  Caoutchouc  160,  212,  377, 
453>  459.  564,  910-11 
Rubunga  283 
Rubi  R.  123,  291,  337 


Ruki  R.  (Muhindu,  Busira-Juapa)  113, 

1 14,  1 17,  139  et  seq.,  290 
Russia  and  the  Congo  State  272 
Ruwenzori  Mts.  164,  419,  752,  873,  885, 

893.  895 

Sacrifices,  human  or  other  111,  652,  672, 
776 

Sahara  sea,  the  ancient  931-2 
Saint-Marcq,  M.  de  185 
Saker,  Alfred  2,  16,  18  et  seq.,  27  et  seq., 
33,  3&>  38  et  seq.,  42  (death  of),  62,  344, 
889 

— Miss  Emily,  Prefatory  note  ; 42 
Saker,  Helen  (the  steam  launch)  5 1 
Salaries  of  Congo  State  or  Company 
employes  448,  463,  478 
Salt  116,  125,  167,  675,  793-4 
Samba,  Ba-  160,  164 
Samba  Mts.  158 
Sandals  599 
Sandflies  230 

Sandstone  formations  104,  15 1,  153,  155-6, 
210-11,  212,  306,  498,  802,  894  et  seq. 
Sanford,  Mr.  H.  S.  445,  453 
Sanga  River  99,  107,  128,  288,  344,  761, 
891 

Sango  people  and  language  366-8,  370, 
512,  570,  573,  651,  672,  780,  818,  829, 
832  et  seq.,  840-1 

Sankuru  River  146,  153-5,  156  et  seq., 
162,  320,  350,  488,  493,  516 
Sannaga,  Sananga  River  (Cameroons)  43, 
51  et  seq.,  343,  503 

San  Salvador  (Kongo)  63  et  seq.,  70,  74, 
82,  85  et  seq.,  95,  179  et  seq.,  393,  548 
Sant’  Antonio  (Congo  mouth)  or  Sonyo  72, 
74,  75,  266 

Sargent,  Mr.,  of  Bristol  305  ; Sargent 
Station  305,  329 

Sarmento,  Senhor,  Lieut.,  and  Mme.  208 
et  seq. 

“ Saturn  ” mark,  the  1 5 1,  160,  167 
Savage-Landor,  Mr.  H.  468 
Scandinavians  431,  463 
Scars,  burns,  scar-tatuing'564  et  seq.,  570 
Scenery,  Notes  on  104,  163,  151,  153, 
155,  156,  167,  172,  188-92,  205,  211, 
241  et  seq.,  277,  282,  312,  338 
Schagestrom,  Commt.  436 
Schneider  (German  explorer)  149 
Scherlinck,  Lieut.  427 
Schists  188 

School  Children,  scholars  of  Baptist 
Mission  135,  147,  191,  203,  235,  239, 
243,  327-31 

Schweinfurth,  Dr.  Georg  84,  127,  134, 
346,  403,  533,  759 

Scientific  publications  of  Congo  State 
491  et  seq. 

Scimitars  (curved  swords)  775 
Sciurus  920 
Sclater,  Dr.  P.  L.  931 
Scorpions  937 
Scrotum  covering  138 
Scott,  John  64 


INDEX 


987 


Scottish  missionaries  319,  421 
Scrivener,  Rev.  A.  E.,  B.M.S.  224,  246 
Secret  societies  665  et  seq.,  717 
Sefu  185 
Selagnella  957 

Semi-Bantu  Tj  see  Bantu,  Semi- 
Semio  348 

Semliki  R.  350,  352,  861 
Senegalese  96 
Senga,  Chief  4 66,  505 
Sesamum  oil  361 
Sese,  Busese  : see  Babusese 
Sese  Is.,  Victoria  Nyanza  872 
Sewing  675,  812 
Sexual  initiation  666  et  seq. 

— morality  676,  716-17 
Seventeenth  prefix  in  Bantu  853,  854-8, 

886 

Shale  188 

Shari  River  basin,  water-parting  348,  436, 
500,  893,  922 

Sharpe,  Sir  Alfred  314,  315,  319,  416,  419 
Shaving  (see  also  Depilation)  579 
Shell  beads,  ornaments  790,  957-9 
Shells,  land  and  fresh- water  935-6,  957 
Sheep,  domestic  137,  19 1,  617  et  seq., 
878-9 

Shields  1 1 7,  144,  354,  769-72,  949,  955-6 
Shindler,  Rev.  j.  H.,  B.M.S.  226 
Shinko  R.  (or  Chinko)  348,  436,  834 
Shrew  mice  818,  917,  948 
Sierra  Leone  ioo,  351,  427,  490,  547,  827, 
903,  906 

Siffert,  Lieut.  333 
Silvey,  Miss,  B.M.S.  386 
Sims,  Dr.  A.,  A.B.M.U.  64,  97,  116,  166, 
887 

Simulium  flies  230,  277,  942 
Six,  seven,  roots  for,  in  Bantu  862,  871, 
874,  876-7,  884 
Sjoblom,  Rev.  Mr.  439,  469 
Skin,  colour  of  negroes’  145,  350,  953 

— decoration  : see  Colouring,  Cicatriza- 
tion, Tatuing 

— flaps  over  pudenda  138,  574-5 
Skins,  wearing  of  590,  593-6 

Skirts  (bustles,  flounces)  worn  by  women 
594-5 

Skulls  of  negroes  80,  121,  197,  405,  498- 
542,  599 

Slade,  Rev.  A.  D.,  B.M.S.  226 
Slate  rocks  337,  340 

Slaves,  slavery  121,  138,  340,  389,  442 
et  seq.,  471,  649,  656  et  seq.,  685  et  seq., 
707,  712-13,  790-1,  796,  960 
Slave  Trade,  the  29,  32,  76,  83,  139, 
442-3 

Sleeping  Sickness  380,  540,  545,  547  et  seq., 
551-2 

Sleeveless  jackets  of  leather  117,  597 
Smallpox  95,  212,  21 6 et  seq.,  429,  487,  540, 
547,  553 

Smell,  sense  of  508 
Smith,  Mr.  E.  W.  635,  876,  888 
Snags  a danger  to  Congo  navigation 
295  et  seq. 


Snakes  228,  269-70,  279,  816,  928,  950 
Snares  762  et  seq. 

Snuff-taking  609 

Social  organization  684  et  seq.,  697,  704, 
707 

Socidte  Anversoise,  the  438,  459,  468, 
476  et  seq. 

Soko,  Ba-  (Basoko  people)  124,  1 66,  354, 
402,  513,  632,  685,  781-4,  801-2 
— language  829,  864,  884  et  seq.,  887 
Soldiers  of  Congo  State  433,  464,  465-6, 
494-6,  480  et  seq. 

Soldier-settlers  of  Congo  State  334,  494-6 
Solongo,  A-  people  268-9,  69 7 
Songs,  singing  712,  724 
Soot  for  colouring  skin  561 
Sorcerers,  witch-doctors  391  et  seq.,  395, 
659,  660  et  seq. 

Sorghum  grain  600,  605 
Soul,  native  ideas  as  to  the  639  et  seq., 
660  et  seq. 

Souza,  Roderigo  de  70 
Spain,  Spaniards  20,  22  et  seq.,  25,  36,  87, 
946-7,  956-63 

Spanish  missionaries  22-5,  947,  963 
Spears,  iron  144,  370,  496,  769-74,  780  ; 

wooden  129,  351,  771,  955 
Spear-heads  as  currency  790,  794-7 
Spearing,  Miss  Martha,  B.M.S.  226 
Speke,  Capt.  81,  310,  425 
Spells  of  magicians  660  et  seq . 

Spiders  of  Congoland  936-7,  939 
Spirits,  belief  in  636  et  seq. 

Sponges  944-5 

Spoons,  native  586,  630-1,  747 
Sporrans,  wearing  of  592-4,  596-7 
Spur- winged  geese  153 
Squirrels  920,  948 
Stainier,  M.  Xavier  492,  500 
Stairs,  Capt.  419,  422-3 
Stanley,  (Sir)  H.  M.  77,  81,  83,  84,  87,  91, 
95,  102,  108,  124,  127,  128,  529-30,  721, 
755  ; his  general  idea  of  Congo  geo- 
graphy in  1885  130  ; and  Ruwenzori 
164 ; Emin  Pasha  Relief  Expedition 
1 71,  179  ; founds  Congo  State  409 
et  seq.  ; collects  Bantu  dialects,  N.E. 
Congoland,  831,  888 

Stanley  Falls  126,  128,  164,  296,  299, 
300,  302,  306,  410,  797 
Stanley  Pool  76  et  seq.,  95,  97,  98  et  seq., 
103,  177,  228,  285  et  seq.,  300,  897 
Stanleyville  185,  292,  296,  321 
Stapf,  Dr.  Otto,  Prefatory  remarks  ; 902 
Stapleton,  Rev.  W.  H.,  B.M.S.,  Prefatory 
remarks',  134,223,  231,  322,  328-9,  331, 
353.  363.  659,  819,  825,  831  et  seq.,  838 
et  seq.,  844,  890-1,  918 
Steamer  adventures  on  the  Congo  257 
et  seq.,  263-4,  295 

Steamers  on  the  Lower  Congo  272,  493  ; 

on  the  Upper  Congo  295-6,  493 
Steatopygy  504,  51 1 
Stegomyia  942 
“ Stick- insects  ” 938 
Stokes,  Charles  429,  430,  438 


988  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Stone  Age  on  the  Congo,  stone  imple- 
ments 492,  498,  500,  724,  802  ; F.  Po 
955 

Stools,  native  744,  746,  757-8 
Storks  153,  321 
Storms,  Capt.  424,  687 
Strauch,  Gen.  409 

String,  native-made  356,  630  ; plaiting  of 
801,  807,  810 

Strophanthus  234,  557,  762 
Stroobank,  Lieut.  436 
Strychnos  nuts,  poison  663,  689-92  et  seq., 
762 

Sturgeon,  Thos.,  B.M.S.  18  et  seq. 

Sudan,  the  436,  598,  767  ; Sudanian  in- 
fluence, culture,  climate  798-9,  896 
Sudanese  negroes  511,  610,  789,  834 
Sue  R.  132 
Sugar  602 

Sugar-cane  78,  111,  141,  600,  602,  607 
Surgery,  native  ideas  of  5 5 7 
Sutton,  Messrs,  (seed  merchants)  247 
Sutton  Smith,  Rev.  H.,  B.M.S.  224,  309, 
465 

Swahili  people,  language  124, 427,  605,  827 

Swan,  Mr.  C.  A.  319,  888 

Sweet  potatoes  78,  607 

Sweden,  Swedes  381,  431,  461,  887 

Swords  202,  774-6 

Synodontis  783,  934 

Syphilis  203,  549,  555-6 

Tabu  placed  on  men’s,  women’s  food 
or  relations  614,  631,  672,  683-4,  691 
Tabwa  people  and  language  405,  492,  717, 
874,  887 

“ Tails  ” worn  by  natives  588-9 
Tambourines  719 

Tanganyika,  Lake  81,  91,  313,  317,  424 
et  seq.,  493,  498,  539,  (myth  as  to  origin 
of)  816-18,  830,  852  et  seq.,  932  et  seq., 
9 36,  944-5 

Tatu  (tattoo),  tatuing  151,  160,  167,  355, 
366-7,  562  et  seq. 

Tawareq,  the  (breeds  of  sheep  and  dogs) 
619 

Taxation  380,  459-60  et  seq.,  481 
Tea  227 

Teeth,  mutilations  of  123,  127,  144,  571 
et  seq.  ; use  of  763-4 

— necklaces  of  human  122,  129,  402, 
585  ; of  beasts’  126,  585,  791 
Teetotums  711-12 

Tegipudenda,  objects  serving  as  574,  588, 
592-3.  956 
Teke  : see  Bateke 
Teke  language  : see  Bateke 
Temperatures  894 

Temples  of  the  dead,  Fetish  temples  646 
Termites  34  et  seq.,  613,  929,  937-8 
Ten,  roots  for,  in  Central  African  lan- 
guages 843  et  seq.,  865,  871-7,  884 
Terns  and  Scissor-bills  153,  927 
Tervueren  (Congo  Government)  Museum 
451,  491  et  seq.,  623-3,  712,  810,  812, 
922,  925,  931 


Tests  of  innocence,  ordeals  692-5 
Tetrodon  934 

Thomas,  Mr.  Oldfield,  Prefatory  remarks  ; 
922,  948 

Thome,  Sao  185,  442,  950,  962 
Thomson,  George  48 

— Joseph  408,  421 

— Rev.  Quentin,  B.M.S.  42,  889 
Thieves,  tests  for,  punishment  of  692-5 
Thys,  Col.  272,  309,  417,  453,  486 
Ticks  (Arachnids)  549,  936-7,  965 
Times,  The  377 

Tiputipu  (Tippootib)  124,  165,  179,  185, 
424  et  seq. 

Toads  823,  930 

Tobacco  78,  137,  158,  171,  361,  600,  602, 
609,  796,  908 
Tobback,  Lieut.  427 
Tomato  78 

Tomtom  drums  361,  708,  718-22 
Topoke  people  302,  354,  513,  573,  577 
Torches  785,  813 

Torday,  Emil,  Prefatory  remarks ; 160, 
(on  the  peoples  of  the  Kasai- Kwango) 
194;  (on  Katanga)  316 ; (Aruwimi,  etc.) 
335  et  seq.  ; (Banza  people)  360-2  ; 
on  cannibalism  402  et  seq.,  405  ; on 
Msidi  419  et  seq.  ; on  the  Batetela  sol- 
diers and  Scandinavian  officers  431-2  ; 
as  an  explorer  491  ; on  the  Bavumbo 
520  ; on  the  hair  of  Bahuana  527  ; on 
the  Bayanzi  529-30 ; on  native  dis- 
eases 548,  551  et  seq.  ; on  body  orna- 
mentation 562  ; circumcision  576  ; 
hair  576 ; hemp-smoking  608  ; tabu 
on  food  614;  earth-eating  615;  re- 
ligious beliefs  and  rites  638  et  seq.  ; 
burial  customs  652  et  seq.  ; the 
functions  of  chiefs  658  ; secret 
societies  670-1  ; marriage  customs 

683  ; poison  ordeals  689  et  seq.  ; native 
inheritance  698  ; songs  and  music 
717-24  ; houses  739  et  seq.  ; the  cross- 
bow 766  ; methods  of  fishing  on  the 
northern  Congo  781-2  ; rafts  785  ; 
native  myths,  folk-lore  815  et  seq.  ; 
Congo  languages  826  et  seq.,  887  et  seq. 

Tornadoes  234,  261,  628,  894,  962 
Torrend,  Rev.  Father  826 
Tortoises,  Turtles  43,  585,  613,  815,  929, 
950 

Totems  : totemistic  tabu  on  food  614,  672, 

684 

Towns,  villages  : in  the  Kongo  country 
66  et  seq.  ; Bavumbo  520  ; Bagenya 
522  ; Bashilele  742  ; Banza  761  ; 
Nyamnyam  758 

Trade  (native  restrictions  on)  395  et  seq.  ; 

trade  in  the  Congo  basin  789  et  s?q. 
Tragelaphs  923 
Transmigration  of  souls  632 
Transport,  difficulties  or  facilities  of  415, 
453 

Trap  rock  155 

Traps  138,  145,  775,  779-85 

Tree  worship  640,  654 


INDEX 


989 


Trees  (ornamental  or  useful)  66,  111,  136, 
153,  191,  905,  906 
Treponema  549 

Trials,  trial  by  ordeal  688,  689  et  seq. 

Tribal  marks  366,  367,  370 
Trumpets  67,  145,  722 
Trypanosoma,  trypanosomiasis  549  et  seq., 
552  (history  of  our  knowledge  of  try- 
panosomiasis) 

Tsetse  flies  229,  549  et  seq. 

— diseases  549  et  seq. 

Tu-  prefix  160 

Tubulidentata  (Aard-varks)  926 
Tuckey,  r.n.,  Capt.  J.  K.  80 
Tukongo,  the  160,  444 
Tukula  (see  Nkula)  560 
Tungila  R.  207 
Tungwa  65  et  seq.,  82,  92,  95 
Tunis  (government  of)  492,  598 
Turacos  928 

Turumbu  302,  354,  513-14,  574,  753 
Tusi,  Tutsi,  Ava-,  Uru-  people,  language 
5i5,  623,  859,  873 

Twenty,  separate  root- words  for,  in 
Central  African  languages  845  et  seq., 
884-5 

Twins,  customs  regarding  644 
Uapaca  tree  909 

Uganda  162,  194,  433,  437,  508,  872-3 
Uganda  mutiny  433 

“ Uganda  Protectorate ,”  the  (book)  363, 
430,  5 1 1,  572,  609,  762,  786,  835,  856, 
860,  887-8,  938,  944 
Umbrellas  200-1 
Underhill,  Dr.  E.  B.  41 
Underhill  Station  98,  106,  226,  270-2,  438 
Unexplored  portions  of  the  Congo  basin 
491 

United  States  of  America  381,  427,  461 
Universities  Mission  12 
Unyoro  179,  194,  829,  856,  872-3 
Usnea  lichen  106,  129,  21 1 

Van  Calster  436 
Van  de  Velde,  Commdt.  185 
Vandervelde,  M.  468 
Van  der  Schmidt,  Lieut.  432-3 
Vangele  (Vice-Governor)  Lieut.-Col.  97, 
114,  127,  133-4,  346,  367,  410,  418,  435, 
453,  58i 

Van  Kerckhoven,  Capt.  134,  418,  435 
Van  Kerckhovenville  727 
Van  Lint,  Lieut.  427 
Vedy,  Dr.  757 

Venice,  a vegetable  267,  338 
Vermeersch,  Rev.  Father  A.  461,  466,  468 
Verner,  Mr.  S.  P.  153,  155  et  seq.,  346,  507, 
517,  521,  835,  888,  912 
Victoria,  Queen  455 
Victoria,  Mt.  (Cameroons)  48,  50 
Victoria  settlement  (Cameroons)  37,  43, 
46,  60 

Victoria  Nyanza,  Lake  234,  313,  317,  942, 
944-5 

Vines,  wild  109,  907 


Virunga  volcanoes  310,  344,  895 
Vivi  95,  97,  226,  271,  273,  283,  410-11 
Voandzeia  ground-nut  606-7 
Volcanoes,  volcanic  energy  48,  310,  895, 
946-7 

Vollont,  Lieut.  197 

Vos,  Rev.  Father  De  (Belgian  missionary) 
55i 

Vultures,  fishing  vultures  153,  267,  927, 
950 

Wadelai  435 
Wagigi,  the  366 
Wahis,  Baron  413,  467 
Wamanga,  the  : see  Bamanga 
Wamba  River  151,  209,  21 1 
Wambutu  dwarfs  : see  Bambutu 
Wanda  people  138,  508 
Wangobelio  or  Waujabilio  324,  521 
“ Wangwana  ” (see  Swahili)  124 
War,  among  natives  775  et  seq. 

Ward,  Mr.  Herbert  179,  180 
“ Washenzi  ” 124 
Wasps  939,  940 

Water,  words  for  143,  283,  286,  347 

— action  of  191 

— birds  153,  167 

— bucks  923 

Watet  people  366-9,  788 
Wathen,  Sir  Charles  2 
Wathen  mission  station  97,  188,  191,  225, 
903,  937 

Waujabilio  521,  731,  743 
Wauters,  Father  73 
Wauters  Mts.  156,  895 
Wauters,  Mons.  A.  J.  4,  5,  128,  280,  317, 
468,  486,  491,  932 
Weapons  in  burial  ceremonies  654 
Weasels,  black  and  white  ( Ictonyx , etc.) 
919 

Weatherley,  Capt.  Poulett  314 
Weaving  (loom,  spinning)  590,  806 
Weeks,  Rev.  J.  H.,  B.M.S.  16,  223,  362, 
378,  440,  466,  492,  931-6 
Wele  River,  Wele-Mubangi  84,  127,  133, 
346  et  seq.,  435,  492,  787-8,  893 
Wellman,  Dr.  F.  C.  550 
Welshmen  84,  91 

Werner,  Mr.  J.  R.  337,  418,  573,  663 
- — Miss  A.  337 
Werre,  R 347-8 

West  Indies,  West  Indians  18,  36,  555 
Weyns,  Major  438,  492 
Whetstones  802 

Whisks,  fly,  carried  by  medicine-men  and 
orators  662,  688 
Whistles  323,  637,  715,  722 
Whitehead,  Rev.  John,  B.M.S.  224,  556, 
708,  781,  890 

— Mrs.  246 

White  man,  the,  in  Africa  174,  207 
White,  Rev.  Harry,  B.M.S.  505,  739,  779 
White  Fathers,  the  12,  409,  424 
White  ants  : see  Termites 
Whitley,  Rev.  H.  G.,  B.M.S.  226 
Wia,  Mt.  278 


990  GEORGE  GRENFELL  AND  THE  CONGO 


Widows  650,  655  et  seq. 

Wigs  1 5 1 , 585,  599,  601,  808 
Wildemar,  Dr.  E.  De  491,  910-11 
Williams,  Col.  (American)  445 
Winton,  de,  Sir  Francis  146,  167,  41 1, 
4i3 

Winton,  de,  Mr.  W.  E.  920 
Wise  sayings  824 

Wissmann,  H.  von  97,  146-7,  158,  165, 
182-4,  453,  517,  888,  901 
Wissmann  Falls  155 
— Pool  1 5 3 

Witchcraft,  Witches,  Wizards  (and 
Witchcraft  ordeals)  35  et  seq.,  197,  203, 
262,  385  et  seq.,  390  et  seq.,  659  et  seq., 
665,  954  et  seq. 

Woermann,  German  house  of  59 
Wolf,  Dr.  L.  146-7,  149,  158,  453,  516 
et  seq.,  888 

Women  : in  general  244,  246,  402,  473, 
558,  614,  630,  674  et  seq.  ; Manbettu 
592,  675  ; Bangala  595,  678  ; Mongo 
678  ; Momvu  674  ; Nsakara  674  ; 
Nyamnyam  675-6  ; Mongwandi  675-6; 
Bangata  678  ; Bahuana  683  ; Ababua 
587,  592,  676  ; Ngombe  535,  592-4 ; 
Bapoto  558-9,  565  ; Lunda  572,  585, 
595-6,  683  ; Bongo  or  Sango  367,  369, 
573;  Bayanzi  111,  244-5,  385  et  seq., 
585,  678,  714-15  ; of  the  Mubangi  129, 
585,  674  ; of  Lulongo  138  ; Bayaka 
152,  202  ; Kongo  678  et  seq.  ; Basoko 
355  ; Banza  361,  677 
Women  missionaries,  the  work  of  224, 
246-7 

Women’s  work  812 

Wooden  weapons  771-4,  955-6 

Worms  944 

Wouters,  Chevalier  d’O.  de  426,  427 
Wrestling  763-4 
Wright-Hay,  Mrs.  224 


Writing,  native  love  of  247 
— beginnings  of  807,  8 1 1 

Xylophone,  the  209,  712,  722 

Yak  a,  Bayaka-  (people,  language)  71, 
152,  1 60-1,  172  : see  Bayaka 
Yakoma  132,  570,  832 
Yakusu  222,  255,  329,  466,  472 
Yalala,  Falls  of  275-7 
Yalemba  3,  372-4 
Yambinga  123 
Yambuya  124,  335,  354 
Yams,  600,  672,  908-9,  958 
Yanjali  466 

Yanzi,  Ba-  : see  Bayanzi 
Yaponga  country  127 
Yaunde  869,  891 

“ Yaws  ” disease  362,  549,  556,  937 
Yeke  pygmies  524 

Zambezi  R.,  Zambezia  80,  317,  498,  550, 
558,  933.  934 

Zande,  A-  (see  Nyamnyam)  359,  561,  570, 
655,  815,  818 

Zanzibar  82,  84,  146,  318,  596 
Zanzibaris  196,  539,  556 
“ Zappo-zaps  ” (Basonge)  159,  441-2, 

461,  516,  545 
Zebra  320,  349 
Zenkerella  920 
Zinga  Rapids,  Falls  279,  283 
Zither,  the  723 
Zizania  rice  600-1 

Zombo  plateau,  people  69,  92,  152,  284, 
396,  638 

Zongo  Falls,  country  (Mubangi  River)  127, 
132,  346,  348-9,  362 
Zoological  Society  of  London  912,  921 
Zulu-Kaffirs,  the  558,  683,  728,  854 


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